Columbia Center (formerly Bank of America Tower and Columbia Seafirst Center) is the tallest skyscraper in the downtown Seattle skyline, as well as (according to real structure and number of habitable floors) the tallest building in the State of Washington, and the West Coast region of North America, west of Chicago. It occupies most of the block bounded by Fourth and Fifth Avenues and Cherry and Columbia Streets. At 284.2 m (932 ft) it is currently the second tallest structure on the West Coast (after Los Angeles´ 72 stories U.S. Bank Tower), when the antenna is counted as structure. It contains 76 stories of class-A office space above ground and seven stories of various use below ground, making it the building with the most stories west of the Mississippi. From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_Center

Construction of this building began in 1982 and finished in 1985. It was designed by Chester L. Lindsey Architects who also designed the Fourth and Blanchard Building in the Belltown neighborhood, and was built by Howard S. Wright Construction. The tower was originally designed to be about 306.5 m (1,006 ft), but federal regulations by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) would not allow it to be that tall so close to the nearby Sea-Tac Airport. Although city land use regulations at the time were intended to limit skyscrapers to about 50 stories, the developer, Martin Selig, obtained the necessary permits for a 76-story skyscraper due to a part of the law that allowed bonus height for providing retail space with street access. Columbia Center plays host to the largest firefighter competition in the world. About 1,500 firefighters from around the world yearly make the trek up 69 floors and 1,311 steps wearing their full firefighter gear. This event benefits the local chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma society. From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbia_Center