One of the most remarkable traits of the minds overseeing Dubai’s rapid transformation into an international real estate, tourism and technology hub is their desire to remain head and shoulders above the competition.
Be it the iconic Palm Jumeirah or the world’s tallest tower Burj Khalifa, Dubai always endeavors to the best in the world. And not just for the sake of it. Authorities in Dubai also negotiated numerous physical and conceptual limitations to bring the two icons to the world, setting several new engineering and architectural benchmarks along the way.
While the government of Dubai is seriously focused on achieving its smart city goals by 2021 by incorporating cutting edge technology in everyday life, it hasn’t lost its love for architectural marvels.
The other day, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, formally broke ground on what would be the next tallest man-made structure in the world. According to project’s developer Emaar, The Tower at Dubai Creek Harbour will be a “notch higher” than the world’s current tallest building in the world Burj Khalifa and will redefine the city’s skyline.
The plans for the project were first revealed in April this year and Emaar had put the cost estimations at close to $1 billion. The tower’s design has been penned by Spanish-Swiss neo-futuristic architect Santiago Calatrava Valls, who revealed that the tower would have “swinging platforms so people will be able to go into the platform and then the platform will turn and you will be in the viewing deck”.
The tower will be part of an ambitious, multi-million-dollar retail and residential mega development along the Dubai Creek Harbor.
Emaar Chairman Mohammad Alabbar said the site’s proximity to the Dubai International Airport would have a bearing on how high The Tower would be. In a statement, Alabbar said: “From Burj Al Arab, Emirates Towers, Burj Khalifa and now The Tower, Dubai has been the centre of innovation for super-tall structures and breakthrough developments in design, architecture and engineering. We are pushing our boundaries in every aspect of this new master-planned development, one of the largest in the world, which underlines the spirit of positivity and hope that our nation celebrates. It will be a sterling addition to the smart city that Shaikh Mohammad envisages, with futuristic digital features that meet the aspirations of the next generation. We will continue to push the frontiers of engineering and construction to complete the project in time for Expo 2020 Dubai.”