Yikes! Chicago's Willis Tower's The Ledge Has Cracks

Above, the Willis Tower (left, center). Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Chicago's Willis Tower has a tourist attraction called the The Ledge on the 103rd Floor.

For people were inside The Ledge (it is a glass enclosure, or ledge, that protrudes out from the building giving spectacular views of the city) when they heard cracking noises.

According to NBC-Chicago:

All four boxes of The Ledge, the 103rd floor tourist attraction atop Chicago's Willis Tower, were closed Thursday morning for what an official said was a routine inspection. 

The move comes hours after cracks appeared in what the official said was a coating designed to prevent scratches on the glass. 

"Skydeck Chicago is open today while the protective coating is being replaced," said Brian Rehme, a spokesman for public relations firm FleishmanHillard. "We have temporarily closed the four Ledge boxes for routine inspection we hope to reopen them shortly." 

The coating was replaced Thursday afternoon. Rehme insisted the structural integrity of The Ledge boxes were sound.

Since I am not very fond of heights, nobody would find me in that thing.

The Willis Tower is the formerly-named Sears Tower (although many people still call it by its old name).

Source: http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicago-willis-tower-sky-deck-ledge-crack-261079001.html#ixzz33C2Gv5CX

One World Trade Center Named Tallest Building In U.S.

Above, the dethroned Willis Tower (center), formerly known as the Sears Tower.  Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One World Trade Center in New York City has been named the nation's tallest building, according to an article in the Japan Times.

According to the article:

NEW YORK – They set out to build the tallest skyscraper in the world — a giant that would rise a symbolic 1,776 feet from the ashes of ground zero. 

Those aspirations of global supremacy fell by the wayside long ago, but New York won a consolation prize Tuesday when an international architectural panel said it would recognize One World Trade Center — at 541 meters high — as the tallest skyscraper in the United States. 

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, considered a world authority on supersized skyscrapers, announced its decision at simultaneous news conferences in New York and Chicago, home to the 442.26-meter Willis Tower, which is being dethroned as the nation’s tallest building. 

Measuring the height of a building would seem to be a simple thing, but in the case of the new World Trade Center tower it is complicated by the 124.36-meter-tall needle atop the skyscraper’s roof.

I tend to agree with those who say that a needle or antenna should not be counted when measuring the height of a building. But that is not my decision.

One World Trade Center, also known as "The Freedom Tower," is a beautiful building. I'll give it that.

To read more, go here.