A Closer Look: Rand Building
From the Photo series: A Closer Look: Explore Western New York’s architectural treasures series
A look at the Rand Building in Lafayette Square, built in 1929. Lighting was restored on the upper tier, making the building stand out amid the Buffalo skyline at night.
Details in the dark
The new illumination accentuates the detailed brickwork and stone molding atop the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
City central
The Rand Building recently added lighting to its uppermost tier, Tuesday, Nov. 29, 2022.
14 Lafayette Square
The entrance to the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Guilded lobby
The lobby of the Rand Building as night falls, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Marine theme
A tallship emblem blazes the brass doors to each elevator in the lobby at the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Brass mailbox
The former letterbox at the end of the 26-story mail chute at the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Phone booth
Detail of a former telephone booth, now used for storage, in the lobby of the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Floor 13
The elevator light is illuminated in the lobby of the Rand Building which, bucking superstitions at the time it was built, includes a 13th floor, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Open stairwell
The view looking down the center of a staircase at the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Tiered roof
As night falls, the illumination takes shape in the archways that might otherwise remain hidden atop the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Concrete finials
The intricate finials are illuminated atop the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Brick archway
Brick archways atop the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Lofty neighbors
The neighboring Liberty Building is visible behind the middle tier of the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Radio tower
Detail of the structure, originally planned as a platform to board dirigible passengers, which is now home to radio equipment central to tenant radio stations atop the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Skyline icons
The newly illuminated peak of the Rand Building brings the tower into prominence along with its neighbors, the Liberty Building and Electric Tower, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Looking up
The newly illuminated peak of the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Open office
A currently vacant office on the third floor has amazing views of Lafayette Square in the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
City view
Communication equipment on the roof of the Rand Building with a prime view of the Main Street district, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Southern view
Skyscrapers to the south peek over the ledge surrounding the middle tier of the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Decorative concrete
Detail of a spiral on a finial as it is framed in a brick archway outside the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Lafayette Square
View of Lafayette Square and neighboring buildings, including the Liberty Building, from the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Architectural embellishments
The view looking up at the top tier of the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Lake Erie view
A view of the neighboring Liberty Building and the Lake Erie basin from a window at the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Historic purpose
Detail of the structure, originally planned as a platform to board dirigible passengers, is now home to radio equipment central to tenant radio stations atop the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Fleur-de-lis
An intricate bronze grate cover in the lobby of the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Rand Building
The label above the entrance to the Rand Building in Lafayette Square, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Court Street view
Liberty Building and City Hal in a view from the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.
Main Street view
The view looking south toward One M&T Plaza, Seneca One and Main Place Tower from the Rand Building, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022.Â
Lafayette Square at night
An aerial view of Lafayette Square in downtown Buffalo, Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022.Â

