LeVeque Tower
The LeVeque Tower is a 47-story skyscraper in Columbus, Ohio. Located at 50 West Broad Street, it was the first skyscraper to be erected in downtown Columbus. The building rises to a height of 555 feet, which at the time of its completion made it the tallest building found between New York City and Chicago and the 5th tallest building in the world. It is also one half foot taller than the Washington Monument in Washington DC. It continued to reign as the city's tallest building until 1977, when it was surpassed by the Rhodes State Office Tower.
History
Began in 1924 and completed in 1927, LeVeque Tower is considered an excellent example of the Art Deco style. It was originally commissioned by the American Insurance Union. Its creation was widely spearheaded by the local business and political magnate John J. Lentz. The named was changed from the American Insurance Union Citadel (AIU Citadel for short) to Lincoln-LeVeque Tower when the building was purchased in 1945 by John Lincoln and Leslie L. LeVeque after the AIU went bankrupt from the depression and the construction of the tower itself. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. In 1977, the name was officially changed to the LeVeque Tower. The building has been owned by Lennar Properties since financial difficulties forced the sale in 2004; much of the 354,000 square foot leaseable space remained vacant for some time after the sale, but recent renovations to the interior have enticed a fair amount of leasing back to the tower.
LeVeque Tower is home to a variety of businesses and offices, including, at its base, the elegant Palace Theatre of Columbus.
Palace Theatre
The Palace Theatre is a 2,827-seat theater designed by Thomas Lamb as a vaudeville theater. Lamb used France’s Palace of Versailles as his inspiration. The construction of the theater was personally supervised by vaudeville mogul Edward Albee of Keith-Albee. The dressing room tower in the backstage area was designed as a small hotel, complete with a "front desk," where performers picked up their room keys and mail. Kitchen facilities and a children's playroom were available. The dressing rooms are named after cities on the vaudeville touring routes.
In 1929, the Palace was renamed the RKO (Radio Keith Orpheum). In 1989, the Palace Theatre was purchased by CAPA, which consolidated its administrative functions with those of the Ohio Theatre. The Palace now hosts performances by the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, the Jazz Arts Group, the Broadway Series, and scores of CAPA-sponsored shows.
References
- Perkins, Michael (2004). LeVeque: The First Complete Story of Columbus' Greatest Skyscraper. Bloomington: Authorhouse. ISBN 1-4208-0294-1.
- CAPA venues - Palace Theatre history
- Columbus Business First: "Papers clarify LeVeque Tower owner change"