Lean and mean is in. New buildings being constructed the world over are reflecting the same trend. A recent report in the Wall Street Journal said developers are building tall and thin skyscrapers with astonishing views to rope in clients.
Burj Kalifa in Dubai, the giant building, has 163 floors. Demand for skyscrapers has always been there, now the trend is changing a bit. New York is awaiting a tower which will be 154-feet taller than the Empire State building. It will be built on 432 Park Ave. on 6,240 square-feet of space against the usual 10,000 square feet by architect Rafael Vinoly.
Another giant tower is being built in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the kingdom Tower, which will reportedly be a kilometer long.
The Burj Kalifa replaced Taipei 101 in Taiwan. It seems every five years, a building comes up taller.
For a long time it was the Sears Tower in Chicago, which was comfortably occupying the tallest building space. But the last decade seems to have thrown up some towering giants.
Why this sudden interest towards tall and thin?
People in the know say that advancements in structural designing and building materials and the use of steel-reinforced concrete allows architects to do things that were impossible before. There are also software to detect issues of efficiency.
"Ten years ago, the tools were a lot rougher, it's getting a lot more sophisticated," Ahmad Rahimian, chief executive at WSP Cantor Seinuk told WSJ.
"If you can build more slender and higher, you can get more units with good views-and height is valued," said developer Jon Stovell of Vancouver, British Columbia. Stovell completed a 350 feet tower which has 4,850 square foot floors. "It was one of the last development sites in the tony Coal Harbour neighborhood, and that sale prices of more than $1,000 per square foot justified the added costs of building high", WSJ quoted him as saying.
These high-end buildings come with a huge price tag; a duplex penthouse approximately costs about $50 million.
Buildings get expensive as floors go higher. "It's definitely not easy or cheap, rising high-end apartment prices have helped make such buildings possible." Michael Stern, managing partner of JDS Development Group told WSJ.
