Fort Worth building implosion

[JohnT]

Another opportunity...

Landmark Tower could be imploded next month

By SANDRA BAKER
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER

FORT WORTH — The demolition of the 30-story Landmark Tower in downtown Fort Worth has been set by the city for March 18 and a raffle may decide who pushes the button to start the implosion, city and company officials said Tuesday.

But officials at XTO Energy, the building’s owner, say that date could change as the pre-demolition work proceeds.

“We’re not for sure yet,” said Joy Webster, XTO’s vice president of facilities. “This permit had to be filed, but it can be extended. As the demolition proceeds, the date is still being defined.”

The city’s Transportation and Public Works office on Tuesday issued a statement regarding the implosion and street closures that will begin on Monday, March 13 if the date holds. By the time of the demolition, a 12-block area around Landmark Tower, at Seventh and Houston streets, that has been designated as the safety perimeter, will be closed for a few hours, the city said.

Webster said XTO Energy is planning to sell raffle tickets for a chance to push the button that ignites the explosives that will take down the building. Details are still being worked out, but a downtown charity will benefit from the ticket sales, she said.

Midwest Wrecking in Fort Worth began general demolition work on the building in mid-November. Demolition Dynamics in Franklin, Tenn., is handling the implosion. The company imploded Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia, Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Florida and Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta.

David Densmore, president of Midwest Wrecking, said Tuesday that about 60 percent of the preparation work for the implosion is completed. The exterior of some of the lower floors has been removed, exposing the building’s steel structure.

Midwest Wrecking is now preparing the columns in the building to let the building fall, and beginning in the next day or so, a metal mesh netting will be wrapped around the structure that will hold in debris during the implosion, Densmore said.

Most of the building will fall into a 30-foot basement area that has been cleared below the building and into a 20-foot trench that has been dug to the north of the building. The trench will also be extended to the west side of the building, he said.

The huge piles of concrete and debris that now sit on the lot will be spread to the north and west of the building to serve as a barrier to direct the downflow of air from the building’s collapse upward, and away from adjacent buildings, Densmore said.

XTO bought Landmark Tower for $5.5 million in a foreclosure sale in January 2004. The former office building has been vacant for about 15 years. At one time, a developer planned to renovate the structure into luxury condos, but his company fell into bankruptcy and the building was foreclosed on.

Street closures will begin on Friday, March 17 at 9 a.m., when two lanes on Throckmorton, Houston, Sixth and Seventh streets, around the building will be closed to accommodate trailers and other demolition equipment. Houston and Seventh streets will be completely closed at 6 p.m. that evening.

The demolition is scheduled for between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. Saturday, March 18.

The safety perimeter stretches from Taylor Street on the west, Commerce Street on the east, Eighth Street on the south, and Fifth Street on the north.

The command center will likely be on the east side of the Fritz Lanham Federal Building, about a block south of the building.

[dane714]

Thanks for posting this. I hope to be able to catch this.

[JohnT]

Originally Posted by dane714

Thanks for posting this. I hope to be able to catch this.

You're welcome. I hope to make it also. Catching it in the golden, morning light would hopefully render some compelling images.

[PeteQ]

I just put it on the calendar. Thanks!

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

One of our Ft Worth Members need to get a pic up of it's current state.
I wonder what is right around it?
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=e...5,0.001808&t=h
Tall building in the center.
This is just a couple blocks from the convention center, building has a parking lot around 2 sides of it. Looks like there are only clear views from the south and north west nothing really great from due east at all.

[CTroyMathis]

'John T. Roberts' has some good photos of the current state here.

It will be amazing to see this building brought down, through you all's photos.

[bburton]

Here are two shots of this building from my portfolio of downtown Fort Worth.

I always imagined what a thrill it would be to have to use that fire escape on the outside of the building -- especially from the very top floor. G A S P ! ! !

[PeteQ]

Well, let's start planning the shoot folks! Let's see if we can get a group together and cover ths from a couple of angles like the Dallas implosion.

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

I really remember the clock on the roof and the CNB logo.

This should be a major implosion but the problem is it's location doesn't offer many clear shots from a safe distance-it is set oddly on that lot.

I plan to get out there that day.

[Guther]

I was out their a few days ago working on some street photography, and got a few good shots of this building, I do not have any Idea as to a good shooting location... I will be scanning all my shots this upcoming week as they were all taken on BW film.

but I hope to make it out regardless for the implosion.

[Huck]

i am in on this - lemme know where we are going to do this. i am in wichita falls so maps maps and good directions would help...HAHA

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

Maybe we could get a meet up point say at the convention Center parking lot just west of the convention center-that would be just a couple blocks away. I would expect big crowds since this is such a large implosion for the area. The little NorthPark III building had a couple thousand people out to see it go down but they were spread out a lot while good views of this one going down will be hard to come by I bet. (I'm sure that we will have to be back at least 500 ft if not more from the site so that puts all the people into the streets and no observors from the neighboring buildings). Plus if you want to get the whole building into your pics you will need to be back a ways so camera space will be at a premium.

Looking at the Google photo of Downtown Ft Worth it looks like Throkmorton and 8th may be pretty good-parking lot between the spot and the building-set back a distance- but it is to the South West side of the tower, due south there is a parking lot but I bet it will be closed because it is way to close and then you have a building there and the South East direction doesn't look that open.

[PeteQ]

I toured the area today while out and about. It is going to be tough to find a good spot if the set-back lines are anywhere near what they were in Dallas recently. More scouting is in order!

[bburton]

I plan to take an afternoon this week and walk 360 degrees around that building with my camera recording the view from different angles which I'll post on this thread.

What kind of set backs should we anticipate? 2 blocks? 4 blocks?

At that time in the morning the sun will be from the southeast, so it would seem that any open vantage point from that direction might be the most desirable.

Thoughts?

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

I would guess at a minimum 500 ft but maybe farther, don't think it will be 2 full city blocks but you may want to look at angles and views that are that far back.

When they brought down the old YMCA back in downtown Dallas, across from the First Baptist Church, I think they had us around 500 ft back but it wasn't as tall as this structure. I think it was maybe 12 or so stories tall, I just remember that they had to sand bag the walls and plywood them on the church to protect their stained glass windows.