Located at 301 North Main Street, Winston Tower has had many phases over the course of its history. In many ways, the story of Winston Tower largely mirrors the story of Winston-Salem itself. The recent successes for this building, and for downtown as a whole, are all the more exciting for knowing the ups and downs that have preceded today.
The Early Days
While the early 1900’s had been marked by success and a boom in downtown construction, the 1930’s through 1950’s were a time of stagnation as far as construction. In 1962, Wachovia Bank and Trust, based in Winston-Salem, announced plans for a new tower for their headquarters.
The 30 story building was completed in 1966, becoming the first addition to downtown’s skyline since the Reynolds building in 1929. This commitment from Wachovia was instrumental in a new phase of revitalization in the central business district.
Upon its completion, the new Wachovia Tower became the tallest building in the state, beating out the Reynolds building. When first built, Wachovia Bank and Trust occupied almost 40% of the building, hence its original name. Its construction was instrumental in the downtown revitalization of the late 1960’s, kicking off a new wave of construction in the area.
This skyscraper was known as the premier office space in Winston-Salem until the construction of One Triad Park, often referred to as the BB&T Building, in 1987. Around the same time, Wachovia began planning to move into a larger space. In 1995 they did so, relocating into Wachovia Center, now Wells Fargo Center, located at 100 North Main Street.
Turn of the Millennium
For almost a decade after Wachovia’s move, the building sat relatively lifeless and without a name atop it. This was a time in which Winston’s downtown growth was, in general, relatively stagnant.
The turn of the millennium was a time in which our downtown began to change course in terms of growth. 2000 marked the first new building in what is now Innovation Quarter, which was indicative of a new phase of revitalization for our downtown as a whole. From 2000 to 2014, over $1.2 billion was invested in our downtown across many different sectors.
Once again, Winston Tower’s trajectory mirrored that of the whole central business district. In 2003, a major investment was put into the building with extensive renovations to bring it up to new office standards. With these improvements, the building also received a new name: Winston Tower. This new era for the building and Winston itself were marked by a new energy!
The Modern Era
In August of 2022, the building was purchased by new ownership. This change has once again brought a new focus to the future of the building. As ownership looks to fill vacancies in the building, they are concentrating on companies that have developed in local business incubators such as Winston Starts. This phase of the building’s life once again reflects what is happening in the community. Winston’s continued growth is largely in the entrepreneurial space and it is exciting to see this building step into the ecosystem that helps local companies grow and be a part of keeping them here in Winston.
With this new focus and goal has come improvements to the building. New amenities include a stunning conference room, state of the art kitchen, and tenant lounge, which house leisure activities such as ping pong and an indoor putting course. The ownership has put a new focus on establishing a community in the building and creating a space in which people are excited to come to work. This focus is indicative of workplace trends across the country and show the growth of our central business district in terms of being on the forefront of creating a community in which people want to live, work, and play.
