Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis)

웰스파고 센터 (미니애폴리스)

The Wells Fargo Center is a 57-floor skyscraper in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was finished in 1988 and is 236 m (774 ft) tall, which makes it the third-tallest building in the city. It was first called the Norwest Center, and the architect was César Pelli.

See it on the 3D globe →

At a glance

Country: United States
Location: Minneapolis, USA
Built: 1988
Height: 236 m
Type: Skyscraper

Quick answers

Where is Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis)?

Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis) is in Minneapolis, USA, United States.

When was Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis) built?

Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis) was built in 1988.

How tall is Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis)?

Wells Fargo Center (Minneapolis) is about 236 m tall.

An Art Deco-inspired tower of cream stone setbacks with an illuminated crown.

Pelli gave it a modern take on the Art Deco style, with stepped-back tiers like some older towers nearby. Many people also see it as a salute to 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. At night, floodlights on the rooftop steps light up the upper floors until midnight. Despite the bank's name change to Wells Fargo in 1998, important regional operations still work here.

How it came to be

The tower stands where the old Northwestern National Bank Building once stood. That building was damaged in a fire in 1982 and was blown down in a controlled demolition two years later.

The first plan was a 45-story tower on a square base that would have been the tallest in Minneapolis. But the building lot became half as big, so the design was changed into the tower we know today.

Efficient and lit up

Floodlights point up from the setback rooftops and shine on the sides of the upper floors from sunset until midnight. Even so, the building uses much less energy than the older one it replaced.

In 2000 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency named it one of the 100 most energy-efficient buildings in the country, and in 1989 it won an award from the Urban Land Institute.

Fun facts

Its first name was the Norwest Center.
Its design is often compared with 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York.
It was once thought to be one foot shorter than the Capella Tower, but that tower turned out to have a different height.