The ALICO Building is a 22-story office building in

downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in American and Canadian English to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political, and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ( ...

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and Interstate 35, I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin, Texas, Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 popul ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, located at the intersection of Austin and 5th Street. The building is currently owned and operated by the American-Amicable Life Insurance Company of Texas (a subsidiary of Industrial Alliance). At tall, it is currently the tallest building in Waco.

History

Waco TX - Austin Street from 6th Street - Alico Building

The ALICO building was built in 1910 by the architectural firm Sanguinet & Staats for the Amicable Life Insurance Company at a cost of (equivalent to in ), and was completed in one year. It is the second oldest skyscraper built in Texas as well as the oldest skyscraper in Texas still standing, after the

Praetorian Building The Praetorian Building, also known as Stone Place Tower, was a 15-story, high-rise constructed in 1909 at Main Street and Stone Street in the Main Street District of downtown Dallas, Texas. It was regarded the first skyscraper in Texas and t ...

in Dallas, built in the year prior to ALICO, was demolished in 2013. The ALICO Building was not heavily damaged by the

1953 Waco tornado outbreak A deadly series of at least 33 tornadoes hit at least 10 different U.S. states on May 9–11, 1953. Tornadoes appeared daily from Minnesota in the north to Texas in the south. The strongest and deadliest tornado was a 1953 Waco ...

, unlike many buildings in downtown Waco. It swayed several feet when directly hit by the F5 tornado, although the building escaped severe damage or collapse. In 1965, Amicable Life Insurance Company and American Life Insurance Company merged to become the American-Amicable Life Insurance Company, the current tenant of the building. In 1966, the building underwent renovations, including the addition of the large neon sign at the top of the building displaying the acronym "ALICO". In 1982, the ALICO building was designated a historical landmark by the

Texas Historical Commission The Texas Historical Commission is an agency dedicated to historic preservation within the U.S. state of Texas. It administers the National Register of Historic Places for sites in Texas. The commission also identifies Recorded Texas Histor ...

. In 2012, it was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as part of the Waco Downtown Historic District.

History

References

Further reading