If you look at the Los Angeles skyline, your eyes usually land on the spire. It’s tall. Really tall. In fact, at 1,100 feet, the Wilshire Grand Center—which most locals and industry insiders still just call the Korean Air Los Angeles building—is technically the tallest building west of the Mississippi River. But there's a catch. It only holds that title because of the needle on top. If you’re just counting the roof, the U.S. Bank Tower down the street actually looks down on it.
People think this was just some corporate vanity project. It wasn't.
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Chairman Cho Yang-ho of Hanjin Group had a weirdly specific vision for this corner of Wilshire and Figueroa. He didn't just want an office block. He wanted a statement of Korean investment in the heart of the "second capital of Korea," as LA is often called. Honestly, the story of how this building got made is a mix of high-stakes real estate gambling and a desperate need to fix a dying 1950s hotel.
The Old Wilshire Grand Had to Die
Before the glass sail existed, there was the original Wilshire Grand Hotel. It was built in 1952. By the late 2000s, it was, well, tired. It was a blocky, beige relic that didn't fit the vibe of a modernizing downtown. Korean Air bought it in 1989, and for a long time, they just ran it as a standard hotel.
Then the 2008 recession hit. Most developers were running for the hills.
Instead of pulling back, Hanjin Group doubled down. They decided to level the entire site and spend over $1.2 billion. That is a massive amount of capital to inject into DTLA when the economy was still shaking. They tapped AC Martin Partners to design it, and the lead architect, David Martin, basically threw out the "LA Rulebook."
You see, for decades, LA buildings had to have flat roofs. It was a fire department regulation so helicopters could land in emergencies. Look at the skyline from 1980; it looks like a collection of shoeboxes. The Korean Air Los Angeles building was the first major skyscraper to get a waiver for this. They argued that sophisticated fire suppression and a "tactical landing platform" were better than a flat roof. That's why we have the iconic curved "sail" shape today.
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It's Not Just Offices
If you walk into the ground floor looking for the lobby, you'll be confused. There isn't one. Not a traditional one, anyway.
One of the coolest, or maybe most annoying things depending on your patience, is the "Sky Lobby." To check into the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown—which occupies the upper floors—you have to take a high-speed elevator straight to the 70th floor. The views are jarring. You’re literally looking down on the helicopters.
The building is essentially a vertical sandwich:
- The bottom is retail and "Class A" office space (where Korean Air keeps its regional headquarters).
- The middle is a massive ballroom and meeting space complex.
- The top is the hotel, topped off by Spire 73, which is the tallest open-air bar in the Western Hemisphere.
If you go up there on a windy night, you can actually feel the building move. It’s designed to sway. That’s the only way a 1,100-foot glass tower survives the San Andreas fault. The structural engineering involves a massive "core" of reinforced concrete that acts like a spine.
Why This Building Changed DTLA Business
For a long time, Figueroa Street was where business went to sleep at 5:00 PM. The Wilshire Grand Center changed that by forcing "mixed-use" to its logical extreme. By putting 900 hotel rooms on top of 400,000 square feet of office space, they ensured the building never actually closes.
There was a lot of skepticism. People wondered if LA could support another luxury hotel.
But the timing was perfect. The building opened in 2017, right as the "DTLA Renaissance" was peaking. It sits right across from the 7th Street/Metro Center station. This makes it one of the most transit-accessible skyscrapers in the city. For Korean Air, it’s a giant billboard. The logo at the top isn't just for show; it’s a marker of the massive trade relationship between South Korea and Southern California.
The Logistics of a $1.2 Billion Pour
Here is a fact that sounds fake but isn't: the foundation of this building holds a Guinness World Record.
In 2014, they had to do a "continuous pour" of concrete for the base. They had over 200 trucks circling the site for 20 hours straight. They poured 82 million pounds of concrete. If the pour had stopped for even a few hours, the concrete wouldn't have bonded correctly, and the whole project would have been a disaster. They had to coordinate with the LAPD to shut down city blocks just to keep the trucks moving.
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It was a logistical nightmare that turned into a local spectacle. People actually stood on the sidewalks with lawn chairs to watch wet cement go into a hole.
The Lighting Controversy
Not everyone loves the building.
If you live in a loft in the Toy District or South Park, the Wilshire Grand is basically a giant LED television. The programmable lighting on the "spine" and the "sail" can be seen for miles. During the World Cup or the Dodgers' playoff runs, the building glows blue or green. Some critics call it "light pollution." Others see it as the heartbeat of a "New New York" vibe LA is trying to cultivate.
Honestly, it’s a bit of both. It’s loud. It’s bright. It’s very "look at me." But that was exactly what Korean Air wanted. They didn't spend a billion dollars to be subtle.
What to Keep in Mind if You Visit
If you’re heading there for a meeting or just to grab a drink, don't just park in the first garage you see. It's expensive. Like, "did I just buy the parking space?" expensive.
Take the E-Line or the B-Line (formerly the Gold and Red lines) and get off at 7th/Metro. You walk out of the station, look up, and you're there.
Also, if you want to go to Spire 73, check the weather. Even if it’s 75 degrees on the sidewalk, it can be 60 degrees and incredibly windy 73 stories up. They have heaters, but the wind is no joke. The glass partitions are high, but they don't block everything.
The Future of the Tower
Post-2020, the office market in LA has been weird. A lot of towers are sitting half-empty. The Korean Air Los Angeles building has fared better than most because it's "Trophy Space." Big law firms and tech companies would rather have half a floor in a brand-new, LEED Gold-certified tower with a 70th-floor gym than three floors in a dusty 1970s plaza.
It’s also a key player for the 2028 Olympics. Expect this building to be the "home base" for a lot of international dignitaries.
Actionable Insights for Navigating the Wilshire Grand Area:
- Avoid the "Elevator Trap": If you’re visiting an office on the lower floors, do not go to the Sky Lobby. The elevator banks are split. Check the digital kiosk in the ground floor courtyard first.
- Dining Hack: Everyone goes to the expensive steakhouse on the 71st floor (La Boucherie). It’s great, but if you want the same view for the price of a coffee, go to the InterContinental lobby cafe during the day.
- Photography Tip: The best place to photograph the "sail" isn't from the base. Go three blocks south to the corner of 9th and Flower. You get the angle where the curve of the glass perfectly catches the sunset.
- Business Networking: The lobby bar on the 70th floor is arguably the best "unspoken" networking spot in the city for the trans-Pacific trade industry. You'll hear as much Korean and Mandarin as you do English.
- Security Check: This is a high-security building. If you don't have a badge or a reservation, you aren't getting past the ground floor elevators. Make sure your name is on the visitor list before you show up.
The Wilshire Grand Center isn't just a building. It's a $1.2 billion bet on the idea that Los Angeles is a vertical city, not just a horizontal sprawl. Whether you like the spire or not, it has fundamentally shifted the center of gravity for the downtown core.
Next Steps for Your Visit
If you're planning a trip to the tower, check the local wind advisories before booking an outdoor table at Spire 73, as they frequently close the outdoor section during high-velocity gusts. For business visitors, ensure your host has registered your ID in the building's "Datawatch" system to avoid a 20-minute delay at the ground floor security desk.