Tower of the Americas San Antonio elevator

The Tower of the Americas is a

observation tower An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision to conduct long distance observations. Observation towers are usually at least tall and are made from stone, iron, an ...

-restaurant located in the Hemisfair district on the southeastern portion of Downtown San Antonio,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The tower was designed by San Antonio

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

O'Neil Ford and was built as the theme structure of the 1968 World's Fair, HemisFair '68. It was named as a result of a name the tower contest created by the executive committee. 68 people submitted the name the tower is now known by. It was the tallest observation tower in the United States from 1968 until 1996, when the

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Veg ...

Stratosphere Tower The stratosphere () is the second layer of the atmosphere of the Earth, located above the troposphere and below the mesosphere. The stratosphere is an atmospheric layer composed of stratified temperature layers, with the warm layers of air ...

was completed. The tower is the tallest occupiable structure in San Antonio, and it is the 30th-tallest occupiable structure in Texas. The tower is located in the middle of the former HemisFair '68 site and has an observation deck that is accessible by elevator for a fee. There is also a lounge and

revolving restaurant A revolving restaurant or rotating restaurant is usually a tower restaurant eating space designed to rest atop a broad circular revolving platform that operates as a large turntable. The building remains stationary and the diners are carried on ...

at the top of the tower that provides panoramic views of the city.

Construction history

Construction of the tower began on August 9, 1966 and cost $5.2 million. The top house of the tower was constructed at ground level and hoisted to the top of the poured concrete shaft. As the top house was being hoisted into place, on October 30, 1967 some of the cables used to hoist it snapped, leaving it resting and precariously tilted on the tower's shaft. Eventually, oil field pipes were used in lieu of cables to complete the job. It was completed in approximately 18 months, though not quite in time for the fair's opening ceremonies held on April 6, 1968. It was opened to the public five days later on April 11. The top house still had not been finished, with construction materials and lumber strewn about.

Tower restaurant

In 2004, Landry's Restaurants, Inc. won the bid for a 15-year lease to manage and operate the property for its owner, the City of San Antonio. Landry's undertook an extensive $8 million renovation of the existing restaurant and lounge and observation deck and added a

4-D film 4D film is a high technology multisensory presentation system combining motion pictures with physical effects that are synchronized and occur in the theatre. Effects simulated in 4D films include motion, vibration, scent, rain, mist, bubbles, ...

"ride" called "Skies Over Texas," that gives the history of

in a

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

format. Additionally, Landry's spent another $4 million to add approximately 200% more space for ground level attractions such as a gift shop and cafe. Renovations were completed and the tower re-opened with the new Eyes Over Texas Restaurant, Bar 601 and the Flags Over Texas observation deck on June 21, 2006. The restaurant rotates slowly, and observation deck entry is included in the cost of a tower ticket. In September 2007, Landry's converted the Eyes Over Texas Restaurant into one of its Chart House outlets. Prior to Landry's, Frontier Enterprises (owner of San Antonio-based Jim's Restaurants) operated the tower of the Americas' restaurant for more than three decades. Five North American Towers

Tower heights

*750 ft (229 m) to top of the antenna. *622 ft (190 m) to top of roof. *579 ft (176 m) to indoor observation deck. *560 ft (170 m) to outdoor observation deck. *550 ft (168 m) to restaurant and stationary level.

FM radio

Since 1970 the roof has hosted a tapered steel mast, used as support for three FM antennas; 101.9 KQXT (then known as KCOR-FM), 102.7 KJXK (then KTFM), and 104.5 KZEP (then KITE-FM). In 2007, the three individual antennas were replaced by a 16-bay master antenna that radiates all three FM signals including the HD signal for KQXT. Clear Channel Radio and Electronics Research Inc. headed up the project along with their contractors and involved the City of San Antonio and Landry's Restaurants. The new antenna system improved coverage for all three radio stations. An option existed for several years to add facilities for a move in signal on 97.7 (requiring rearrangement of ten other stations) to share the site. This was organized by Bret Huggins and David Stewart of Rawhide Radio, LLC (partly owned by Hispanic Broadcasting now Univision radio). Transmitters are located between the public areas of the observation deck and the revolving restaurant in equipment bays along with air conditioners and plumbing.

Trivia

The fastest recorded time up the tower's 952 steps is 5 minutes 18 seconds on January 29, 1981.''San Antonio Express News'', January 30, 1981, page 12-A

References

*"A Guide to the San Antonio Fair, Inc., Records, 1963-1995 (Bulk 1964-1968)"
Texas Archival Resources Online
Retrieved Feb. 9, 2006.

External links

History of the Tower of the Americas
research guide with archival photographs
Tower of the Americas restaurantEmporis: Tower of the Americas
*
FCC-Entry
{{San Antonio Towers completed in 1968 Tourist attractions in San Antonio Buildings and structures in San Antonio Towers in Texas Observation towers in the United States Towers with revolving restaurants Restaurants in San Antonio World's fair architecture in Texas HemisFair '68 1968 establishments in Texas