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Fargo: The Latest Architecture and News

SOM Breaks Ground on Block 9 in Downtown Fargo

The architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill have broken ground on Block 9, an 18-story mixed use tower in the heart of downtown Fargo, North Dakota. Inspired by the the prairies, the development was designed to reflect the scale of the city and surrounding buildings. The project includes an expansive public plaza with retail, office, hotel, and residential programming, and will make use of timber and local stone. Developed by Block 9 Partners, a partnership of Kilbourne Group and R.D. Offutt Company, the mixed-use tower will transform Fargo’s skyline.

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Chico State Arts & Humanities Building / WRNS Studio

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Where the Real Skyscrapers Are (Hint: North Dakota)

The Burj Khalifa might get all the headlines today, but for nearly half a century before it was built, some of the tallest structures in the world were actually in North Dakota, in the form of TV masts. In this post originally published by re:form on Medium, Casey Tolan investigates the threatened industry that once gave the world some of its most heroic structures.

Name the tallest structures in the world. Maybe flashy skyscrapers in China or the Gulf States come to mind. Or maybe you’re thinking of U.S. icons like One World Trade Center in New York or the Willis Tower in Chicago.

You’re almost certainly not thinking of TV towers. But dozens of nearly anonymous towers around the United States, most in small rural communities, dwarf all but the tallest man-made structures in the world.

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Flood House / F9 Productions

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Exterior

After living a part of their lives in the flood prone region of Fargo, Lance Cayko & Alex Gore from F9 Productions started thinking of the catastrophe that could strike if the flood dikes gave way and for that reason they designed a flood resistant house that takes on the challenge of how to survive in the worst conditions.

Fargo 365 / WRT Design

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Courtesy of WRT, David Witham, Douglas Meehan, Anna Ishii & Hannah Mattheus-Kairy

Fargo 365 was one of three entries into the Downtown Fargo: an Urban In-fill Competition from Philadelphia-based design firm Wallace Roberts and Todd, the design team of David Witham, Douglas Meehan, Anna Ishii, and Hannah Mattheus-Kairy. Their entry was selected as one of two first prize winners. More images and architects’ description after the break.