Dubai has made headlines in recent weeks for its financial woes, and many are saying this once-booming desert metropolis has gone bust. But the emirate does have something to celebrate: The Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest building, is due to officially open on January 4. Photo courtesy SOM The Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building, is due to officially open on January 4. Related Links: World's Tallest Buildings Reconsidered Burj Dubai Breaks Record, and Keeps Going Dazzling Skyscrapers In a Desert City, a Skyline Grows Ever Higher As Economy Sank, Skyscrapers Soared Precisely how many feet this superlative tower rises
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) has changed the way it measures building height. Announced on November 17, the Chicago-based organization now includes below-grade, open-air pedestrian entrances in its calculations; previously, measurements were made from the sidewalk outside the main entrance. CTBUH also eliminated a “height to roof” category due to increased use of spires, parapets, and other features. Graph courtesy CTBUH Related Links: Now Introducing the Burj Dubai At Least 50 Tall Buildings Now on Hold As Economy Sank, Skyscrapers Soared Higher The modifications have prompted a slight change in the ranking of the world’s 10
Photo courtesy Merzproject Joe Herzog, AIA, co-founded Merzproject in 2004. One of the country’s oldest architecture firms has teamed with one of its youngest, betting on expansion while other practices scale back. In early December, Shepley Bulfinch Richardson & Abbott, which was founded by H.H. Richardson in 1874, acquired Merzproject of Phoenix, Arizona, which formed in 2004. The young firm, which will remain in Phoenix with its two principals intact, will also retain its name, with a slight twist; it will now be known as “Merzproject, a studio of Shepley Bulfinch.” In 2008, Shepley Bulfinch reportedly earned $36.6 million in
A tectonic shift took place among winners at this year’s World Architecture Festival (WAF), as projects from developing countries accounted for a significantly larger percent of the honors than they had in the past.
Image courtesy Dennis Findley 'Architects in the U.S. are not looked to for leadership the way they were in the early part of the 20th century or the way they still are in European countries,' says Dennis Findley, AIA. If you follow the prevailing Washington metaphors, the United States sounds like a nation of frustrated drivers. We need a “road map” for everything from the Middle East to Afghanistan to health care. But to the McLean, Virginia, architect Dennis Findley, AIA, we’re actually more like clients with a tricky building project. Instead of a road map, he would like us
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill has broken ground on the $1.7 billion Digital Media City Landmark Tower in Seoul, South Korea. With a planned height of 2,100 feet, it is expected to be East Asia’s tallest tower by the time it’s completed in 2014. Image courtesy SOM The 725,000-square-foot skyscraper appears to swell slightly as it rises, evoking traditional Korean pottery that is slender at the base and flared at the top. Related Links: Work Under Way on Songdo City in Korea KPF Unveils Design for Korean Super Tower Construction of World's Worst Building ResumesEwha Womans University Campus Center “The Korean
The Dept. of Health and Human Services has awarded $508.5 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to build or renovate 85 community health clinics around the country. Competition was stiff for the Facility Investment Program grants, whose winners were announced on Dec. 9. HHS received about 600 applications for the funds, says David Bowman, a spokesman for HHS's Health Resources and Services Administration, which oversees the community health center program. Bowman says that the latest batch of ARRA awards involves larger awards than those contained in a round of HHS stimulus capital funding announced in June. That earlier