Savills Magazine, Issue 61, 2008

The return of high rise lifeby Paul Parsons

‘More people are living in cities and it is becoming increasingly smart to go high rise.’
Charles Weston-Baker, Director at Savills

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All around the world, city dwellers are rediscovering the benefits of residential high rise – stylish, low-maintenance living spaces hundreds of metres up

The view is mindblowing. You are looking down upon a bustling city. Rush-hour traffic clamours in the tangle of streets far below, but in this serene space, the din of the cars is lost and you feel supremely peaceful. As daylight gives way to dusk, pinpricks of light begin to fleck the city’s skyline. Beyond it, the crimson sun sinks behind a vast, still expanse of water. Imagine this was the sight that greeted you every evening as you looked out through your living room window – well, it could be if you are one of the people who has bought an apartment in the Chicago Spire, set to become the world’s tallest all-residential building when it opens in 2011.

While Chicago may boast the tallest, it won’t hold the monopoly. High-rise towers with residential sectors are now springing up in cities all over the world. An increasing number of people are discovering this exciting form of urban lifestyle, which brings together luxury residence, stunning scenery and the ultimate in location for both work and leisure activities.

“There is real interest now in high rise,” says Charles Weston-Baker, a Director at Savills and Head of the International Residential & Resorts Department. “It’s the great capitals of the world that are seeing the biggest resurgence in these buildings: London, New York, but also Dubai and the Middle East. The first thing you notice about them is their beauty. They are crystal jewels and, of course, they’re extremely well serviced – wash-and-go properties – as opposed to a traditional house with a garden, which is much higher maintenance. More people are living in cities and it is becoming increasingly smart to go high rise.”

“With the support of new planning policies and landmark architecture, high-rise living has suddenly become fashionable.”
Mark Dorman, Head of London Development Consultancy at Savills

Changing trends

This is a streamlined living solution that’s sure to appeal to busy professionals, and there are plenty of them. Indeed, there’s a noticeable trend of rural depopulation as city workers, tired of commuting, relocate towards the urban centres. “People crave convenience – for work, for their lifestyles and for leisure activities,” says Ed Lewis, Savills’ Head of London New Homes. “Rather than opting for detached houses in the country, I think for many it’s a case of avoiding the commute at all costs.” Lewis is also seeing interest in urban high rise from couples whose children have grown up. “Empty nesters have often had enough of four-storey living,” he says. “These apartments are cool, dramatic places with fantastic views. They are great in the evening light – exciting spaces to live in.”

Naturally, if a property attracts occupiers it’s going to attract investors too, and with so many residential high rises now under construction, the boom has pulled in considerable buy-to-let interest. Upper-storey properties with the best views in buildings overlooking well-known landmarks are the most popular choices with investment buyers. Good amenities and facilities, parking and security are also factors to consider. “Assuming you can keep a handle on service and maintenance charges, so that your gross-to-net isn’t crippled, then, yes, these properties present excellent investment opportunities,” says Lewis.

But high-rise living spaces haven’t always been so sought after. Mention them to anyone in Britain and it brings to mind images of the postwar monoliths of grey concrete that sprang up in inner cities during the 1960s. These were often ill-sited, as planning policies prevented them being built in established financial or residential districts. They were poorly designed and poorly maintained, soon becoming shabby and run-down.

“The tide has now turned,” says Mark Dorman, Head of London Development Consultancy at Savills. “With the support of new planning policies and landmark architecture, high-rise living has suddenly become fashionable.”

The regeneration programmes being implemented in many cities have also helped. In London, while the number of tall buildings in prime residential areas is still limited, many are now being built as part of the new developments taking place in the Docklands and the East End. In 2006, London Mayor Ken Livingstone encouraged developers to build higher; he hopes to see up to 20 new skyscrapers in the capital by 2015. The tallest all-residential tower in London will be the 48-storey Pan Peninsula East, when it’s completed in 2009. Situated in the Docklands, it stands 147m (480ft) high. Also of note are the 43-storey Strata and ‘360 London’, with its 44 floors of apartments. Both are located in the Elephant & Castle regeneration area and are due to open in 2010.

‘lightweight construction also brought with it the appetite for altitude.’

The height of fashion

But height is relative. In most British cities, going up just seven or eight floors is enough to let you see over the top of neighbouring buildings. Elsewhere it’s a different story. “In London 39 storeys puts you way above everybody else, but if you live in Hong Kong and you’re on the 39th floor, you’ll be looking straight across at someone else on the 39th floor of another building,” says Lewis.

That’s why, if you want to see residential high rise taken to the limit, you need to look to a city known for its lofty architecture – like Chicago. The Chicago Spire will climb a staggering 610m (2000ft) into the sky, its 150 floors encapsulating 1194 individual residences. It has been designed by internationally acclaimed Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrava. What he has created is as much a work of art as it is a marvel of modern engineering. “With its unique spiralling shape, this building is iconic,” says Ned Baring, Associate Director with Savills and the agent responsible for the Spire. “Each residence is different in terms of shape, size and design because of the twists of the building. No two apartments are the same.”

The re-imagining of residential skyscrapers as objects of beauty lies at the very heart of their appeal. The slender form of the Spire is the culmination of a process that began at the turn of the 19th century, with the invention of lightweight, steel-frame construction techniques. Before then, structural considerations forced tall buildings to be unappealing, stout rectangles of masonry. For example, Chicago’s Monadnock Building at 60m (196ft) high, and erected in 1893, was one of the world’s tallest all-masonry structures. The walls of the ground floor had to be nearly 2m thick to support the weight of the floors above, but it was so heavy it sank into the ground. Replacing bulky stonework with steel gave architects the freedom to make their buildings beautiful – they could blend structural integrity with cultural styles and artistic trends and were able to create masterpieces such as the pagoda-like facade of Taiwan’s Taipei 101 and the Art Deco of the Empire State Building.

Of course, lightweight construction also brought with it another important building trend: the appetite for altitude. When it opens in 2009, the Burj Dubai tower in the United Arab Emirates will be the tallest building in the world at over 800m (2634ft) high. Even taller skyscrapers – some in excess of a kilometre – are planned. Architects think buildings up to a mile in height (1600m) could be possible with existing construction technology, with even higher structures becoming feasible as lighter, stronger materials are developed.

As buildings have grown taller, so concern has mounted over their ability to stand up to high winds and earthquakes. Early fixes involved diagonally-braced steel trusses to prevent buildings flexing. But in the 1970s a clever and more effective solution emerged. Called a ‘tuned mass damper’, it amounts to a giant pendulum inside the building that swings in the opposite direction to the building to counteract swaying. Taipei 101 is currently the world’s tallest building, and accordingly is home to the world’s biggest tuned mass damper, weighing in at a hefty 730 tons.

In the modern era, forces of nature aren’t the only perceived threat to skyscrapers, but terrorism seems to have had little to no impact on the sales of high-rise residential properties in the UK and US markets. “This is primarily because there are very few residential buildings tall enough to be considered as targets,” says Mark Dorman. “The twin towers in New York were a symbol of American capitalism, freedom and financial security that is obviously not reflected to such an extent in residential buildings.”

In future, property analysts and architects agree we will be seeing a lot more of the high-rise residence

Integrated living

In future, property analysts and architects agree we will be seeing a lot more of the high-rise residence. At Savills, Charles Weston-Baker thinks these properties could bring about an even greater degree of integration to our home, work and leisure time. “At the Al Reem Island development in Abu Dhabi,” he says, “a lot of it is residential high rise, but it has created a complete lifestyle environment where you have work and residential, leisure and resort facilities in the same place, rather than spreading them out in different areas.”

It’s very green thinking, to create self-contained micro-communities that minimise our need for pollution-generating transport, yet perhaps going high rise is even more progressive than that. Currently, Earth’s population is doubling every 40 years. By that reckoning, there will be more than 13 billion of us on the planet by 2050. Living the high life may turn out to be more of an investment in our future than we’d ever dared imagine.

Santiago Calatrava, designer of the Chicago Spire, is one of the world’s elite architects.

Santiago Calatrava is the architectural genius behind the Chicago Spire, shortly to become the world’s tallest all-residential building.

What was your inspiration for the Chicago Spire?
First of all I tried to relate it to the city of Chicago, which has one of the most beautiful skylines in the world. The location of the Spire was also important at one of the most distinguished points in Chicago, the junction of the river and the lake. I tried from the beginning to make a unique form for the building, something that had never been done before.
What is the most exciting part of it for you?
The part I find most exciting is the way the building meets the ground, in which you see the exterior supports surrounding the four-storey glass-front lobby. I think this will be something very special.
What was the biggest challenge?
One challenging part was to fit into Chicago as a new shape, a new form. The overall building follows a simple principle, but the biggest challenge was going into the ‘vocabulary’ of the tower (which is most associated with a corporate image) and yet create apartments, somewhere to live.
What sort of people do you imagine living here?
There are apartments for singles, there are apartments for families, there are apartments for people with an amazing art collection. There are also apartments for people who want to have a beautiful place in Chicago, and enjoy the wonderful views. I think it will be a place of calm and serenity and a good place to have a home for many different kinds of people.
How did it feel when the plans for the building were approved last year?
To see the city council and the planning commission voting unanimously for the building was a great moment. Another important thing for me was the people of Chicago, who came to defend the building at the public hearing. They understood it was a beautiful feature that will bring fantastic things to the city and enrich the neighbourhood with new people.
Why the upsurge of interest in residential high rise?
I think there is a whole generation of people born in the suburbs who are now coming back to the centre of the city. People are rediscovering the quality of urban life and the beauty of living in the city. The tragedy of many downtown areas is that people deserted them in the 1990s and they became empty places. This is changing now.
What would you say to anyone considering living in the Spire?
It’s a wonderful opportunity to live in a very comfortable environment, a beautiful environment, and to enjoy the breath-taking views you get inside. I hope that it will be like a small, beautiful city in the vertical.
Savills is the exclusive agent for the Spire worldwide. What has the company been like to work with?
We have been working very closely together. Savills has been very encouraging and has brought a great deal of experience to the project.

The top five high-rise residences represented by Savills and its global associates

Live the high life

Chicago Spire

Chicago, Illinois

When it opens in 2011, the spire will be the second tallest building and the tallest all-residential development anywhere in the world. It’s located in Chicago’s Streeterville neighbourhood, with fabulous views overlooking Lake Michigan.

Price per square foot: £720-£2000

Contact: Ned Baring +44 (0)20 7409 9998

The Troika

Kuala Lumpur

Designed by Norman Foster, the Troika consists of three residential towers in the north-east corner of Kuala Lumpur’s City Centre Park. They are the tallest residential buildings in Malaysia.

Price per square foot: £240

Contact: Christopher Hahn +603 2691 9922

World Trade Centre

The Residence, Dubai, UEA

Located next to the Dubai World Trade Centre, and a prime shopping district, this 40-floor residential complex includes a gym, a swimming pool and a private members club. Two- to four-bedroom apartments are available.

Average price per square foot: £310-£340

Contact: Thomas Wiegand +971 4 332 3400

Pan Peninsula East

Docklands, London

Pan Peninsula East is a major new development of 340 residential units situated in the Docklands regeneration area. When completed in 2009/2010, it will be London’s tallest purely residential building, with 48 floors.

Price per square foot: from £840

Contact: Guive Emami +44 (0)20 7531 2595

360 London

Elephant & Castle, London

This exciting new development consists of 474 apartments spread over a 44-floor, 142-metre tower in the London borough of Southwark. Due to be occupied in 2010, it is being built on the site of the old London Park Hotel.

Price per square foot: TBC

Contact: Tom Carrington +44 (0)20 7016 3796