Big building goes kaboom, on purpose

"I look at it all the time, I even have an account in that bank," said spectator Bill Ecker.

But Houstonians like Ecker actually got up early Sunday morning, and even brought cameras, just to watch a bank blow up. It wasn't under the strain of financial ruin, but to literally see the building go kaboom.

"I've never seen a building blow up before, it's kind of a cool thing," Ecker said.

"I think it's going to be very exciting, it's not very often you get to see a building implode," said Mike Rose who was also a spectator.

The Compass Bank building at 2200 Post Oak has called its Uptown District location home since 1967. Far from ominous, its implosion was scheduled in advance and when the seven story structure came tumbling down those watching said it did not disappoint. Even with a crowd gathered and several streets shut down, the sight and sound was startling to some.

"They could've given us a horn warning or something, before the boom, it was exciting," said spectator Alvin Allen.

The Houston-based Redstone Companies, which owns The Houstonian, owns this prime piece of property. The Uptown District expects it to be home to a multi-use space with a hotel, stores and offices. The big question in this economy is how soon that construction will begin.

Redstone said the building had lived out its useful life and that the company will redevelop the land as market conditions permit.