A farewell for the iconic Crosley Tower
UC Board of Trustees approves $47.3 million for remediation and demolition
There are mixed feelings about what has been dubbed by some as the ugliest building on a U.S. college campus.
But now, despite all of the opinions, the iconic Crosley Tower may come down. Its demise has been forecast for years.
Crosley Tower is a among UC's most iconic structures. Photo/UC Marketing + Brand.
The UC Board of Trustees approved $47.3 million at its meeting on April 22 to fund remediation and demolition of Crosley Tower and adjacent Clifton Court garage. Floor by floor demolition is expected to begin January 2026 and be complete by the end of that calendar year.
Designed in the Brutalist style of architecture and “crafted from a single pour of concrete, this 16-story building looks more like a Disney villain's lair than a part of the University of Cincinnati’s campus,” according to a story in Architectural Digest.
The magazine ranked Crosley Tower among the seven ugliest university buildings in the nation, beating out "ugly" structures at the University of Tennessee, Louisiana State University and the University of Iowa.
Trustees previously approved $2.6 million for the design of the demolition of Crosley Tower in October 2023. These additional funds will allow for the completion of the demolition. The tower was named after UC alum Powel Crosley Jr. and opened in 1969 as a lab and research building.
The imposing structure was completed in 1969 with crews pouring concrete continuously round-the-clock for 18 days and nights. Crosley Tower is the second-largest building in the country made of continuously poured concrete, eclipsed only by the Hoover Dam.
The ugliest building on campus, but everyone kind of loves it.
Clara Weber UC DAAP student
Crosley is considered an eyesore for some, while others have nothing but nostalgia for the structure.
It's the source of a few UC urban legends. There's even a student organization, Crosley Tower Appreciation Club, devoted to the building.
Clara Weber and fellow UC student Nikara Schehr show off their gingerbread replica of Crosley Tower at their co-op employer Rockwell Group's holiday party design competition. Photo/provided
A trio of UC students on co-op recently paid tasty tribute to the tower. Clara Weber, Lily Gormley and Nikara Schehr from UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning used Crosley Tower for their inspiration during a gingerbread house competition while on co-op at Rockwell Group, an award-winning architecture firm in Manhattan, New York.
They were given 90 minutes to build an edible structure during an employee mixer.
Their delicious efforts were captured by the Wall Street Journal.
Crosley is “the ugliest building on campus but everyone kind of loves it,” explains Weber, whose team used graham crackers to build a replica.
The experience was also a chance for the UC students to show off their ambition as architect David Rockwell mingled with employees.
UC planners determined Crosley Tower is not a candidate for renovation due to foundation and concrete age as well as adaptability limits to an outdated layout that no longer serves programmatic needs.
Read the Cincinnati Business Courier article online. (Contact Cedric Ricks for access.)
Local 12 News also reported on Crosley Tower.
WLWT also aired a story on Crosley Tower.
All photos/Lisa Britton/UC Marketing + Brand
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