The building was constructed primarily of tan brick and terracotta built over a steel frame in the architectural style of Second Renaissance Revival with elements of Beaux Arts.

The site of the Hoge building, at 705 Second Avenue, was the location of the cabin of Carson Boren, reputedly the first white man's house in what was to become Seattle.

[4] The cabin was later replaced by a row of 1 and 2 story shops facing Cherry Street which would all be destroyed by the Great Seattle fire.

The steel frame of the building was constructed at an amazing pace, with all 18 stories completed in 30 days, a feat which broke all records at the time.

Reportedly, the building was designed with special concern by the architects for seismic events as a result of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.