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The world's tallest building planned – in ex-warzone Basra

The world's tallest building planned – in ex-warzone Basra

20 November 2015

By Steve Rose

Read More: http://www.theguardian.com/artanddes...one-basra-iraq

Quote:

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It is called The Bride of the Gulf, and it will be 230 storeys – 1,152 metres – high. That’s roughly the Burj Khalifa with the Shard on top of it. You’ll probably be able to see it from the Burj Khalifa.

- But height is not the goal, according to its designers, British-Iraqi architecture firm AMBS. Instead, they want to create a “vertical city”, with four interlinked towers of varying heights, containing not just offices and hotels and the usual stuff, but also “its own transport systems, schools, clinics and neighbourhoods”. --- There’s also a vast canopy over a public area at the base of the towers, called “The Veil”. Bride, veil – see what they did there? There’s a security aspect to their plan, too, architect Marcos De Andres explains: 9/11 exposed the weakness of the standalone skyscraper when it came to escape routes, so a cluster of interconnected towers is far safer.

- Basra is a prosperous and relatively peaceful city these days, “more like Kuwait than Baghdad”. The tentacles of the Islamic State are at least 600km away. There’s oil money sloshing around. There are new cars on all the new roads. Five-star hotels and a new sports stadium recently opened (Basra is football-crazy, apparently). The government is working on a new masterplan for the growing city, of which the publicly funded Bride would be the centrepiece. --- The Bride of the Gulf is actually a local nickname for the city. Basra was once considered one of the most beautiful and cosmopolitan places in the Gulf – before Saddam Hussein punished its mostly Shia population, then the Iraq war further scarred it. It was also the supposed location of the Garden of Eden.

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http://i.imgur.com/6NYJLbk.jpg?1

http://i.imgur.com/BxScWW6.jpg?1

Video Link

My initial impressions are that this would be an amazing triumph for humanity but it's exterior is very ugly. Also I don't think this will happen.

If it does get built it will probably get a plane intentionally flown into it, couple of suicide bombings here and there...it'll be fine!

Snowballs have a better chance in hell, but who knows?

The Unlikely Home of the World's Next Tallest Skyscraper

Read More: http://www.citylab.com/work/2015/11/...craper/417510/

Quote:

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The Basra Province is a transformed place. Its 3 million residents are rebuilding and even pushing for autonomy. Make that 3 million oil-wealthy residents. It makes sense that Basra, a metropolitan city before its suppression under Saddam Hussein, would emerge as the new economic capital of Iraq.

- The “Bride” might refer to the veil-like structure that appears to flow from the curtain-wall of the 3,780-foot-tall building into a canopy that covers the base at the podium level and extends seemingly several city blocks from there. How this nearly 17 million-square-foot building will work as a net-zero site, fueled by solar energy, is anybody’s guess. If it operates even close to that efficiently—and it’s not out of the question—it would be a pinnacle of sustainability, at least in terms of energy consumption.

- What really sets the Bride apart is its size—not just its height. The architects put out a graphic showing how much more usable space the Basra super-tall has than its peers. Ultimately, this is a function of the area of the base of the building. The elevator and mechanicals column inside the building doesn’t shrink as you go up, so to rise to a height of around a kilometer (much less a mile) requires a much, much broader base to begin with. In the case of the Bride, the building’s height might be a product of opportunity in Basra.

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https://cdn.theatlantic.com/assets/m.../1ee5e5e54.jpg

https://cdn.theatlantic.com/assets/m.../6611a9f89.jpg

I find it completely unnecessary. Does the city of Basra really need this, or do they just want to compete with their gulf neighbours for longest needle?

I like how WFC has the original 'O' design in the comparison diagram. I think it turned out well, but I loved that 'O'.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rico Rommheim (Post 7248380)

I find it completely unnecessary. Does the city of Basra really need this, or do they just want to compete with their gulf neighbours for longest needle?

no and yes, but it's an impressive vision/proposal though.

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How many people would be able to live in it?

They may have to bring in slave labour to build it like the others.

I give this about as much of a chance of happening as I do to Jesus coming back.

It will be built then because Jesus is coming back.

Quote:

Originally Posted by M II A II R II K (Post 7249479)

They may have to bring in slave labour to build it like the others.

This is in Iraq (!) not the gulf states.

Wow, I absolutely love the design!

That promo video is chaotic and dizzying.

Agreed. Its just fascinating to see, that with all of our modern technology, developments, planning..........that we still don't need to showcase even remotely finalized, or refined design.

....reminds me of Studio Gang's "Wanda Vista", where nobody bothered spending any money on the renderings.......and just assumed 'meh design' was fine!

-Johns Doesif
http://heightscalling.blogspot.com

I just don't know if I see the need for a "vertical city" in a place like Basra… Only 3 million people live there.

Here is an article on this I came across with comments.
http://nextbigfuture.com/2015/11/tal...asra-iraq.html

My big question for towers in general is the climate. Does vertical living make sense from an energy perspective, or do they just not care what it takes.