Continental Building and the 150-Foot Height Limit

Spring and 4th streets

The 150-foot height limit in Los Angeles, which greatly retarded the downtown skyline, was initiated just after the completion of the Continental Building in 1904. The City Council enacted the height limit so that no building could be taller than the Continental Building. City Hall (1928) became the major exception until the Transamerica Building was completed in the early 1960s.

PHOTO: Gayle Rein, 2004