"Skylines of the Future" >Page 1, 2, 3
Tomorrow's
Towers
Dateline: December,
1999
1.
The Shanghai World Financial Center
This fall President Minoru Mori of Mori Building
Co. announced plans to resume building on the 90-story, 1,518 foot / 463 meter
Financial Center. The new design will be even taller than the original plans,
but the targeted height has not been announced. Rising
from a square base to a narrow wedge at the tip, the Financial Center will have
space for offices, a hotel, stores, and restaurants. An open-air observation
deck will sit inside a huge circular hole punched through the upper floors.
2. 7
South Dearborn, Chicago
City officials have
approved plans for this record-breaking structure, but until the developer can
promise secure financing, it's still only pie in the sky. If the project goes
through, however, the building will soar 1,550 feet / 472 meters high. Add the
450 foot / 137 meter spire, and 7 South Dearborn will rise to a staggering 2,000
feet / 609 meters. The new HDTV antennas are actually the main reason for constructing
7 South Dearborn, but the building will contain offices and condos. The upper
stories will be for communications equipment, so there won't be a public observation
deck.
3. Maharishi
Tower of World Peace
A spiritual master in India is proposing this 108-story pyramidal tower in Sao
Paulo, Brazil. Stretching over a vast, park-like landscape, the Maharishi Tower
will be a city in sky with office space, hotels, apartments, and shops. Spacious
atriums at different levels will open onto the inner tower. The Maharishi Tower
is designed according to the ancient principles of Vedic architecture: The proposed
height (1,600 feet / 488 meters) will be twice the base (800 feet / 244 meters),
assuring the "peace, health, and good fortune" of all its residents.
Also in the running is the proposed Kowloon MTR Tower in Hong Kong. The 102-story, 1,803 feet / 549.5 meter structure may take the World's Tallest Title, but... does it count? Only about 1,420 feet / 550 meters of the Kowloon MTR Tower will actually be habitable -- The rest will be steeple. And until financing is secured, no one can guarantee that this dream building will become a reality.
How do tomorrow's tall buildings stack up? Read on for tables, graphs, and links.
Next page > World's Tallest Buildings >Page 1, 2, 3
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