Europe's Tallest Building Opened
Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com
#uk #london #skyscrapers #record #architecture
Europe's tallest building has been officially unveiled in London. The Shard, a 95-story tower which stands at 310 meter, dwarfs almost everything around it, including nearby Tower Bridge and St Paul's Cathedral. It was officially named on July 5 as the highest tower in Europe, in a ceremony carried out by Britain's Prince Andrew, the Duke of York. In 2009 the building was officially launched by Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani, whose country funded the building, and Queen Elizabeth II's son Prince Andrew.
The 95-floor building has a glass facade covering the equivalent of eight football pitches, while the volume of concrete used in its construction could fill 22 Olympic-sized swimming pools. It has capacity for 12 thousand people and will contain a five-star hotel, 600 thousand square meters of office space, luxury restaurants and shops. The jagged-tipped skyscraper will also house 10 apartments, reportedly costing up to US$ 78 million each, which on floors 53 to 65 will be the highest residential properties in Britain.
The US$ 705.4 million project was 95 percent funded by Qatar. The Shard's inauguration marks the completion of the exterior of the building, located on the south bank of the River Thames at London Bridge, while work on the inside is expected to continue into 2013. The skyscraper, whose name was coined by its Italian architect Renzo Piano, is still significantly shorter than Dubai's 828-metre Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. It takes over from Capital City Moscow Tower as the highest in Europe, but it is expected to be surpassed before the end of the year by Russia's planned 332 meter Mercury City Tower. Recently, France also unveiled plans to build Europe's tallest tower "Hermitage Plaza Towers" , but its construction hasn't started yet and its only 320 m tall.
But the building's futuristic silhouette has angered traditionalists who say it has dwarfed older landmarks such as St Paul's Cathedral and the Houses of Parliament. English Heritage, the body responsible for protecting historic sites, says the skyscraper mars a view of St Paul's, which was London's tallest building for 250 years (1710-1962).
The 95-floor building has a glass facade covering the equivalent of eight football pitches, while the volume of concrete used in its construction could fill 22 Olympic-sized swimming pools. It has capacity for 12 thousand people and will contain a five-star hotel, 600 thousand square meters of office space, luxury restaurants and shops. The jagged-tipped skyscraper will also house 10 apartments, reportedly costing up to US$ 78 million each, which on floors 53 to 65 will be the highest residential properties in Britain.
The US$ 705.4 million project was 95 percent funded by Qatar. The Shard's inauguration marks the completion of the exterior of the building, located on the south bank of the River Thames at London Bridge, while work on the inside is expected to continue into 2013. The skyscraper, whose name was coined by its Italian architect Renzo Piano, is still significantly shorter than Dubai's 828-metre Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world. It takes over from Capital City Moscow Tower as the highest in Europe, but it is expected to be surpassed before the end of the year by Russia's planned 332 meter Mercury City Tower. Recently, France also unveiled plans to build Europe's tallest tower "Hermitage Plaza Towers" , but its construction hasn't started yet and its only 320 m tall.
But the building's futuristic silhouette has angered traditionalists who say it has dwarfed older landmarks such as St Paul's Cathedral and the Houses of Parliament. English Heritage, the body responsible for protecting historic sites, says the skyscraper mars a view of St Paul's, which was London's tallest building for 250 years (1710-1962).
