The Equitable Building

The Equitable Building rises thirty-four stories above Wilshire Boulevard, recognizable by a facade of precast concrete panels sandblasted to reveal the light beige limestone aggregate beneath. Completed in nineteen sixty-nine, the skyscraper was the twenty-fifth major project on the boulevard designed by the firm of Welton Becket and Associates. It stands on a block with a distinct place in local lore, as the site previously held the Chapman Park Hotel, which housed women athletes competing in the nineteen thirty-two Summer Olympic Games, and the original location of the Brown Derby cafe.