Skyscrapers Cities Des Moines 801 Grand


Attributed to wikipedia user Richc80
Attributed to wikipedia user Richc80
Height629 feet
Floors45
Year1991

About 801 Grand

801 Grand, also known as The Principal Building, is a skyscraper located in Des Moines, Iowa. It is named after its street address, being located along Grand Avenue in the downtown area of the city between 8th & 9th Street (with High Street the northern border). Completed in 1991 and standing at 630 ft (192 m) it is currently the tallest building in the state of Iowa. It is also the second tallest building between Minneapolis and Denver after the First National Bank Tower in Omaha at 633 ft. The roof is made out of copper sheeting that was designed to form a green coating of verdigris over time, much like the Statue of Liberty. However, unlike New York City, the air salt content in Des Moines was so low that the desired oxidation process failed. The result was the copper turned a dark brown. Recently, discussions started about removing the top layer of copper so that crews could purposely cause the oxidation process to create verdigris. However, it was decided that the current color is fine, and therefore left as is. The building consists mainly of office space which is largely occupied by its owner, Principal Financial Group.

Read More at Wikipedia

See Also