The Federal Aviation Administration has issued a notice of its concerns to developers in Seattle that a newly proposed skyscraper would be too tall, thus posing a hazard to passing aircraft from nearby airports and hospitals.
The skyscraper, proposed by Miami-based Crescent Heights, would stand 1,117 feet above ground level, making it the largest building on the West Coast, surpassing both the Bank Tower in Los Angeles and the Columbia Center in Seattle, according to MyNorthwest.
The building, known as 4/C, would be a mixed-use office and residential tower, including two levels of retail shopping and four levels of above-grade parking, as well as 350 hotel rooms. However, the building is located too close to Seattle's airports and the headquarters of aircraft manufacturer Boeing, thus representing a "presumed hazard" to air traffic, the FAA warns.
"The structure as described exceeds obstruction standards and/or would have an adverse physical or electromagnetic interference effect upon navigable airspace or air navigation facilities," the notice reads in part, according to the Puget Sound Business Journal.
The problems don't end there, however. The FAA also warns that the presence of the cranes required for construction could disrupt the operations of helicopters going to and from the nearby Harborview Medical Center.
"While the Harborview Medical Center may be able to accept the loss of their helicopter special instrument approach for a few months, a requirement for the crane to render the approach unusable for a longer period of time may be unacceptably detrimental to the hospital, and could further limit the height of the building if the crane would be required to be on site for an extended period of time," the notice states.
The FAA does note, however, that there is a way for the building to be approved for construction, reported CNN. If the building's proposed height is cut more than half to 499 feet, then "it would not exceed obstruction standards and a favorable determination could subsequently be issued."
FAA spokesman Allen Kenitzer said that nothing has been set it stone and discussions are still ongoing.
