This list of tallest buildings in Washington, D.C. ranks high-rises in the U.S. capital city of Washington, D.C. The tallest structure in the city, excluding radio towers, is the Washington Monument, which rises 555 feet (169 m) and was completed in 1884. The structure, however, is not generally considered a high-rise building as it does not have successive floors that can be occupied.

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  • This list of tallest buildings in Washington, D.C. ranks high-rises in the U.S. capital city of Washington, D.C. The tallest structure in the city, excluding radio towers, is the Washington Monument, which rises 555 feet (169 m) and was completed in 1884. The structure, however, is not generally considered a high-rise building as it does not have successive floors that can be occupied. The tallest habitable building in the city is the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, which rises 329 feet (100 m). The second-tallest building in Washington is the Old Post Office Building, which is 319 feet (97 m) high. The third-tallest building in the city is the Washington National Cathedral, which rises 289 feet (88 m). The cathedral is built on high ground known as Mount St. Alban, which makes the church seem taller than it actually is. Therefore, the cathedral is visible from many parts of the city. As of July 2008, there are 320 completed high-rises in the city. Washington's history of skyscrapers began with the completion in 1894 of the 14-story Cairo Hotel, which is considered to be the city's first high-rise. The building rises 164 feet (50 m) and 14 floors. Washington went through an early high-rise construction boom from the late 1890s to the mid-1930s, during which time the Old Post Office Building and the National Archives Building were built. The city then experienced a major building boom from the early 1940s to the late 1990s, during which the city saw the completion of 31 of its 48 tallest buildings, including One Franklin Square and 700 Eleventh Street. However, although the city is home to several high-rises, none are considered to be genuine "skyscrapers"; only two completed buildings surpass 200 feet (61 m). The height of buildings in Washington is limited by the Height of Buildings Act. The original Act was passed by Congress in 1899 in response to the construction of the Cairo Hotel, which is much taller than the majority of buildings in the city. The original act limited buildings to the height of the United States Capitol Building, which rises to 289 feet (88 m), but the act was amended in 1910 to restrict the height of any building to the width of the adjacent street plus 20 feet (6.1 m); thus, a building facing a 90-foot (27 m)-wide street could be only 110 feet (34 m) tall. In modern times the skyline remains low and sprawling, keeping with Thomas Jefferson's wishes to make Washington an "American Paris" with "low and convenient" buildings on "light and airy" streets. Washington's height restriction, however, has been assailed as one of the primary reasons why the city has inflated rents, limited affordable housing, and traffic problems as a result of urban sprawl. To escape the District's height restriction, architects wishing to construct higher buildings close to downtown often do so in Rosslyn, Virginia, directly across the Potomac River from Georgetown. One of the most recently completed buildings in Washington, D.C. is Capitol View, which is 171 feet (52 m) high. As of July 2008, there is one high-rise under construction in the city that is expected to rise at least 150 feet (46 m), with one more proposed and one approved for construction. Onyx on First is the only high-rise under construction in Washington; upon completion, it will be the 14th-tallest building in the city. Two other large developments taking place are Square 54 Residential I, which is proposed for construction, and the PNC Bank Building, which is approved. The Square Residential I building at George Washington University is expected to rise to a height of 160 feet (49 m) and 14 stories, while the PNC Bank Building is expected to rise to a height of 151 feet (46 m) and 12 stories. As of July 2008, there is a total of four high-rise buildings under construction, approved for construction and proposed for construction in Washington.
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  • This list of tallest buildings in Washington, D.C. ranks high-rises in the U.S. capital city of Washington, D.C. The tallest structure in the city, excluding radio towers, is the Washington Monument, which rises 555 feet (169 m) and was completed in 1884. The structure, however, is not generally considered a high-rise building as it does not have successive floors that can be occupied.
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  • List of tallest buildings in Washington, D.C.
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