The U.S. Bancorp Tower (also known as "Big Pink") is a 42-story, skyscraper in Portland, Oregon. It is the second tallest building in the city after Wells Fargo Center, and with its nearly office space, it is the largest in Oregon in terms of volume.

History

Designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) with Pietro Belluschi as the consultant, the tower cost $60 million to construct. Ground was broken on May 29, 1981, and the building was largely completed in June 1983. It was dedicated on December 1, 1983. The tower adjoins U.S. Bank Plaza at 555 SW Oak Street, a 7-story, building constructed in 1974. A tower expected to rise about 37 stories was already part of the bank's long-term site plans at that earlier date,

Originally, the building served as the national headquarters of U.S. Bancorp, and was the regional headquarters of that organization until a 1997 merger moved the corporate offices to Minneapolis, Minnesota. As of 2004, U.S. Bancorp had leased until 2015. It has been cited as the restaurant with the best view in Portland.

In 2000, the U.S. Bancorp Tower was sold for a price of $165 million to a partnership of three firms: Unico Properties, JPMorgan and Wafra Investment Advisory Group. In 2004, a majority stake in the tower was acquired by California-based Broadreach Capital Partners LLC, which bought-out JPMorgan and Wafra, At that time, 92 percent of the building was leased. for a price of $286 million.

In 2008 LaSalle Investment Management purchased a majority stake in the building from Unico Properties; the building had an estimated value of $285 million at the time. LaSalle sold their stake in 2015, to TPF Equity REIT that is majority-owned by UBS. Unico Properties retains a minority share in the building. The sale price was $372.5 million, a record for any office building in the Portland area. Unico put the tower up for sale in May 2025, and Jeff Swickard bought it for about $45 million in an all-cash transaction in July 2025.

Design

Perhaps the most unusual features of the U.S. Bancorp Tower are its shape and color. Pietro Belluschi was most concerned about the play of light and shadows on its surface; meanwhile, the SOM team had to work with a uniquely shaped lot due to the street grid. Because of the street grid, the tower features no right angles in its parallelogram footprint. This, in turn, makes it look either extremely slender or wide depending upon one's viewing angle.

See also

  • List of tallest buildings in Portland, Oregon

References

  • Camera feed from atop U.S. Bancorp Tower from KATU