Wilshire Grand: Photos of LA’s tallest tower on its opening day

The Wilshire Grand Center, which soars to a height of 1,100 feet, opened its door to the public for the first time Friday. There were speeches, parties, and a public light show to commemorate the 73-story tower, which, thanks to its decorative spire is now the tallest tower west of the Mississippi. (It edged out the U.S. Bank Tower for that title, one it had held since 1989).

Located at Wilshire Boulevard and Figueroa Street in Downtown LA’s Financial District, it stands out because of that spire—the first one built on a Downtown skyscraper since the 1970s—and its light-up spine.

Developed by Korean Air, the skyscraper took three years to build, starting in 2013 with the razing of the original Wilshire Grand, a hotel renamed from the struggling Statler Hotel. A new InterContinental Hotel, with 889 rooms, was incorporated into the new tower, above office space. For the public, there’s a rooftop bar on the 73rd floor and restaurants on the 71st.

Korean Air’s CEO is a USC graduate, and, according to the Los Angeles Daily News, at Friday’s ribbon-cutting, he said, “LA is my second home. I’ve long dreamed of giving back to this beautiful city.”

If you didn’t get an invite opening festivities, plenty of other people were there to document it for you. Take a look at their photos below.

The lobby of