North Side of 5th Street, west of Grand Avenue
The cylindrical structure on the left was completed in 1989 using plans from J.M. Pei and Partners. At 1017 feet, it is the tallest building west of Chicago and east of Hong Kong, and perhaps symbolized the final rung in Los Angeles' climb toward world city status. The 350 million dollar project was nicknamed the Library Tower because it "borrowed" the air rights of the Los Angeles Central Library in exchange for support of the Library renovation. It is a round high rise with the diameter decreasing toward the top, and it is capped by a "lighthouse".
http://www.usc.edu/dept/geography/losangeles/lawalk/new/tower.html Wow, thanks! Learn something new every day. Interesting stuff. I've seen this building but didn't know its name/nickname -- so this isn't actually connected to the library other than using their air rights in return for financial support of the library?