Although it might not be the most spotting sign of America’s fragile economic recovery, there are tall buildings going up across the country. In just a couple years from now, five cities in America will have brand new skyscrapers they can call their tallest- New York, Miami, Oklahoma City, Louisville, and Atlantic City.
New York: Sending a clear message to the world that they are rebuilding a downtown shattered by Al Queda a decade ago, the Port Authority construction team of New York and New Jersey are working to construct what will become the tallest all-office building in the World and the tallest building, period, in the Western Hemisphere of planet earth. The skyscraper, designed by the same man responsible for the architecture of the Denver Art Museum’s modern extension, the London Metropolitan University’s main building and the Jewish Museum in Berlin, will stand at 1,368 feet tall and provide 2.6 million square feet of office space. In addition to the construction of the 105-floor tower, three other skyscrapers will compliment One World Trade Center, the shortest of which will stand 57 stories tall- still bigger than any building in Denver or San Francisco. As three World Trade Center buildings did not collapse in Manhattan on 9/11, the new six building complex will combine to provide a total of 428 floors of office space to be occupied by new as well as old tenants who lost offices during the September 11th attacks. “We can get back up and have [our city] working again and show people that we are really strong Americans” said New York native Brielle Brilliant. Furthermore, New York City will be constructing five more skyscrapers in different areas throughout Manhattan. Despite being the largest metropolitan area in North America, New York hasn’t had the tallest building on the continent for 35 years. Two buildings in Chicago top the list, with the Willis Tower and the Trump International Hotel constructed in 2000. Now, New York will be back on top.
Miami: Metropolitan Miami, a mixed-use development project, has put up two skyscrapers in the last 4 and half years, both topping 30 stories. A third skyscraper (Met 3), with the help of Shaquille O'Neal's development group, is expected to provide 75 stories of office space, making it the tallest building in the United States south of New York City. In addition to this tower, two skyscrapers, the tallest of which is expected to be 57 stories will rise into Miami's skyline this year. The buildings will be part of a complex known as Capital at Brickell, with condos, offices and retail shops galore.
Oklahoma City: When the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder came to this metropolis of just 600,000 people, they were the first professional sports team ever to enter the state. Moved from Seattle after the Supersonics 20-62 season in 2007, the Thunder couldn’t seem to win two games in a row in their debut year. Questions rose as to weather a small Bible belt city was right for a game dominated by far bigger markets like Miami and Boston. But the Thunder’s 2009 season was an incredible turnaround. They finished 50-32 and forced a Game 6 against the defending Champion Lakers in the playoffs. So far this season, they have sold out every game and Forbes Magazine estimated their worth at $330 million. So what does this have to do with skyscrapers? Oklahoma City has seen a massive population surge due directly to the Thunder’s success. The metropolitan area is inching towards 2 million people and people from all around the region are flooding the city to be part of the Thunder fever. The excitement of having a professional sports team in a state devoid of one for decades is inspiring investments into the future. Set to be complete in 2013, Oklahoma City is adding a 50-story energy tower built by Devon Realty Advisors. The office tower includes a six-story rotunda and a six-story podium structure amassing over 1,800,000 square feet. Expected to cost $750 million by the time it’s complete, the tower will have 50 elevators and provide hundreds of jobs to the city.
Louisville: Perhaps the most interesting story of them all comes from Louisville, Kentucky. The beloved city of will be adding its tallest building ever in 2012- a highly complex, modern and intricate plaza standing at over 700 feet tall. The 62-story skyscraper will contain a public plaza, park, condos, lofts, a hotel, university exhibits, retail shops and a museum- thus the name "Louisville Museum Plaza". The design was chosen by the architecture company "New York City REX" and includes two towers rising from a middle with several smaller towers built underneath this middle. “The building is unique, something that's never been done before. Because it’s structured in such an original, multi-dimensional fashion, it has the façade of legos” said sophomore Denali Gillespie. The design will add spunk to the Louisville skyline and has already added an enormity of construction jobs to the state’s economy.
Atlantic City: With construction to be completed incredibly soon, New Jersey's Atlantic City will be adding two massive, 50-story towers which will be one of the biggest Casino Hotel’s in America. The resort will be home to just under four thousand hotel rooms, 20 restaurants, 40 upscale retail shops and a 5,000-seat arena. It will face the ocean on Atlantic City’s famous Boardwalk Avenue, the inspiration for HBO’s award-winning hit show “Boardwalk Empire”. The towers will provide over 150,000 square feet of gaming space to the public.
In addition to all this construction, Las Vegas will add its second tallest building and Chicago will add its fifth. If there has ever been a time to get excited about tall buildings, it’s now.
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