Tower 155 in downtown Boca marked a construction milestone with a topping-off ceremony.
Hardhats not needed as onlookers on the street watched the final beam raised to the top of the 12-story building.
“We hoisted an elevator beam with an American flag and everyone signed it,” Kaufman Lynn Construction president Frank W. White III told Boca Voice. “We put a tree on the top of the building and in Florida, it’s a palm tree we brought in. It’s ceremonial.”
Topping off is a tradition “when the structure is substantially complete,” White explained.
The ceremony marks the transition from full crews to workers needed to complete the exterior and interior finishes.
The building was often under construction six or even seven days a week, White said. “We went 23 feet down, 13 feet below the water table,” he said.
The garage is underground. “When you look at the finished project, you won’t see there’s a parking structure,” he added.
The nearby sales center went up 10 months before developer Compson Associates broke ground in December 2016.
“There are only 20 condominiums left,” Compson partner Carl Klepper said about the 128-unit building.
There are a 750-square-foot one bedroom and two- and three-bedroom condos from 1,400 square feet and larger, he said. “We have one two-story penthouse left,” Klepper said.
A one-bedroom starts at $570,000 and two-bedrooms start at $1.25 million, he said.
Compson is looking at a certificate of occupancy in the late spring. Closings on the condos possibly in the early summer, Klepper said
The most unusual thing about the art deco-style building designed by Derek Vander Ploeg is the amenities on the roof.
“Walkability is our best amenity,” Klepper added about the location just off Mizner Boulevard and Palmetto Park Road.
“We paid particular attention to the building fitting into its surroundings,” he said. “I think it will be a refreshing spin on Boca Raton living. I’ve lived here since 1997, and it keeps getting better.”
