Salazar Center is a mid-rise Class B
skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...
located on the eastern edge of the
Main Street District of
downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...
Dallas,
Texas (
USA).
History
The 12 story office building, bounded by Main Street, Elm Street, and Cesar Chavez Boulevard, was announced in 1958 as the new home for
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. During construction in 1958 a stack of steel beams tumbled sixty feet to the basement level, killing one worker and injuring two others. Despite the setback, the building opened for business in June 1960 and featured a curtain wall and masonry exterior and attached 7 story parking garage. Blue Cross Blue Shield's 450 employees occupied the upper levels of the building, while lower levels were leased to other companies. The twelfth floor contained an employee cafeteria-auditorium.
The building's location gave it prominence on the eastern edge of the downtown business district as it was mostly surrounded by low-rise early commercial structures. The roof of the building contained a large by 8½ foot electronic message sign; during the 93 second message cycle 10 different advertising and community messages could be flashed (with an 8-second pause between messages). Due to the 1973 City of Dallas sign ordinance banning rooftop signs, the message sign went dark in 1973. The company applied for historic designation of the separate rotating Blue Cross sign, but after denial this sign was also removed.
In 1982 the building was renovated after the departure of Blue Cross Blue Shield to new offices in
Richardson
Richardson may refer to:
People
* Richardson (surname), an English and Scottish surname
* Richardson Gang, a London crime gang in the 1960s
* Richardson Dilworth, Mayor of Philadelphia (1956-1962)
Places Australia
* Richardson, Australian Cap ...
. The building's exterior was removed and refitted with bronze, silver and gray glass in a modern design.
[Dillon, David. "RESKINNING THE SKYLINE - Wary of being outdone, older Dallas buildings get redone." ''The Dallas Morning News'', 5 December 1985, HOME FINAL, ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT: 1f. NewsBank. Web. 5 April 2010.]
Images
Photos of the original 1960 interior by photographer John Rogers.
[Hallway with stairs in Blue Cross hosted by [//texashistory.unt.edu/ The Portal to Texas History">allway with stairs in Blue Cross">[Hallway with stairs in Blue Cross
hosted by [//texashistory.unt.edu/ The Portal to Texas Historybr>
[Blue Cross lobby hosted by [//texashistory.unt.edu/ The Portal to Texas History]
[Blue Cross lobby with lighting hosted by [//texashistory.unt.edu/ The Portal to Texas History]
[Blue Cross office with view of Downtown Dallas during the day hosted by [//texashistory.unt.edu/ The Portal to Texas History">lue Cross office with view of Downtown Dallas during the day">[Blue Cross office with view of Downtown Dallas during the day
hosted by [//texashistory.unt.edu/ The Portal to Texas History
References
External links
Official websiteEmporisProperty ListingHistoric Photo of Building
{{Downtown Dallas
Office buildings completed in 1960
Skyscraper office buildings in Dallas