It was just about a year ago — in fact, it was exactly a year ago — when rumors of skyscrapers and observation decks and new vistas seen from downtown began to flood the local headlines.
The rumors were founded and the wait began: The U.S. Bank Tower, sometimes still called the Library Tower by longtimers around the region, indeed had a major change on the horizon. The skyscraper that’s the huff-and-puff setting for the fall’s famous YMCA-fundraising stair run, the very building seen in films like “Independence Day,” would be getting an alfresco area made for view-enjoyment, party-having, and the thrill of being outside at 69 stories above downtown.