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In the News

The view from high above Washington

Few people get to see the Washington that Tim Reese sees, sitting high above the city while operating a 190-foot tower crane. After going more than a year without work because of the recession and the hit it took on construction, he’s back at work.

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Feb. 17, 2012

Tim Reese walks from the rear of the tower crane at the Marriott Marquis construction site. Reese’s day begins with a 15-minute climb up to his control box on a 190-foot tower crane used to build the hotel.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

Reese finishes work for the day. A veteran tower crane operator, Reese had been grounded for more than a year while the recession brought large-scale construction to a halt. Now, he’s back on the job.

Feb. 17, 2012

Reese finishes work for the day. A veteran tower crane operator, Reese had been grounded for more than a year while the recession brought large-scale construction to a halt. Now, he’s back on the job.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

From his seat, Reese can look down on the city and out across the region’s skyline.

Feb. 17, 2012

From his seat, Reese can look down on the city and out across the region’s skyline.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

In a city where the law holds buildings to a low-rise scale, crane operators have one of the few high-rise perspectives.

Feb. 17, 2012

In a city where the law holds buildings to a low-rise scale, crane operators have one of the few high-rise perspectives.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

Shown is a fisheye view from one of the two tower cranes at the Marriott Marquis construction site.

Feb. 17, 2012

Shown is a fisheye view from one of the two tower cranes at the Marriott Marquis construction site.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

“I’ve never lost my fascination with it, how it stays up here, how much it can pick up,” Reese says of tower cranes.

Feb. 17, 2012

“I’ve never lost my fascination with it, how it stays up here, how much it can pick up,” Reese says of tower cranes.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

Reese had to overcome a knee-buckling fear of heights to climb his first tower crane in 1974. Shown is a view of Massachusetts Avenue looking west from one of the two tower cranes at the Marriott Marquis construction site.

Feb. 17, 2012

Reese had to overcome a knee-buckling fear of heights to climb his first tower crane in 1974. Shown is a view of Massachusetts Avenue looking west from one of the two tower cranes at the Marriott Marquis construction site.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

The $550 million Marriott Marquis hotel is going up next to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, pictured.

Feb. 17, 2012

The $550 million Marriott Marquis hotel is going up next to the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, pictured.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception sits in the distance. Among Reese’s favorite views: incomparable sunrises (and on overtime days, sunsets), the regular fighter-jet salutes over Arlington Cemetery and waving at the White House snipers when he’s working in that part of town. (“They don’t ever wave back.”)

Feb. 17, 2012

The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception sits in the distance. Among Reese’s favorite views: incomparable sunrises (and on overtime days, sunsets), the regular fighter-jet salutes over Arlington Cemetery and waving at the White House snipers when he’s working in that part of town. (“They don’t ever wave back.”)

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

From the crane, Reese can also look out onto the National Cathedral.

Feb. 17, 2012

From the crane, Reese can also look out onto the National Cathedral.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

Facing east atop the tower crane, New York Avenue stretches into the distance.

Feb. 17, 2012

Facing east atop the tower crane, New York Avenue stretches into the distance.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

The view from the tower crane of Downtown Washington.

Feb. 17, 2012

The view from the tower crane of Downtown Washington.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

Reese ties his lunch pail and thermos to a lowering rope after ending his shift.

Feb. 17, 2012

Reese ties his lunch pail and thermos to a lowering rope after ending his shift.

Ricky Carioti / The Washington Post

Construction cranes on the Washington skyline may signify an uptick in the economy..

Feb. 17, 2012

Construction cranes on the Washington skyline may signify an uptick in the economy..

Bill O'Leary / The Washington Post

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