Shanghai Tower (200m+)

[T0M]

Originally Posted by Babaloo

Indeed.

Has there ever been a breakdown of how the NWDA moneycake has been distributed of the years? It would be interesting to see how it has shaped the development of local economies within its area of responsibility.

Also, is there a record of how foreign banks/companies are 'directed' towards certain locations rather than others by regional development agencies?

I can gaurantee that a large chunk of it will have gone on employing the 600 or so people who work for them!

[Dane_e]

2008-09-24


By Alex Turner
SHANGHAI is simply a city of superlatives. From Shanghai Pudong airport, the fastest train in the world, peaking at 431km an hour, takes passengers to the edge of the fastest-growing city in the world.

But the mind-boggling scale of the city and its ambitions can only be really appreciated from the top of the world's tallest building, the Shanghai World Financial Centre (SWFC).

Standing on a glass floor looking down at the 100 storeys below, the 492m high building is an awesome structure. It dwarfs buildings all round it that, in just about any other city in the world, would themselves be viewed as staggering.

The city, which is to host the sixmonth 2010 World Expo with the theme, Better City, Better Life, doesn't just build up.

It has the world's longest bridge, at 32.5km, and today Shanghai has 234km in underground lines. But, by 2010 and the Expo, there will be another 400km, and within another 10 years there will be 800km.

Standing at the site of the Expo - when 70m people are expected to visit an exhibition twice as big as any previous Expo - it is impossible to disagree that, when it comes to getting things done, this city, and this country, can do it.

Cllr Warren Bradley, in a speech to an urban regeneration conference in Shanghai, described Liverpool as a "can do, will do" place. The host city, by contrast, appears to be more of a "just do it" place.

To understand why this all matters to Liverpool and its hopes for a commercially and culturally beneficial relationship with the Chinese port, it is useful to appreciate just how prolific Shanghai's development has been.

Pudong, which today is its financial district with the famous, picturesque, skyline which includes the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, the SWFC and numerous other skyscrapers, was basically derelict just two decades ago.

If the business people who are part of a Liverpool delegation to the city take nothing else home with them, other than a fraction of the ambition Shanghai has shown in the last 20 years, and in its plans for the next 20, then it will be well worth the journey.

Shanghai, albeit with the benefits of working in a one-party state, has shown what can be achieved by astonishingly ambitious plans and an unwavering determination to bring them to reality.

One person on the delegation who was both excited and inspired by this was Liverpool city council leader and committed fan of the partnership with Shanghai, Cllr Bradley. His presence as the city's civic leader was vital to the success of the delegation and his performance in demanding circumstances has been applauded privately by many of the delegates.

It is easy to dismiss the Liverpool-Shanghai twinning relationship as an excuse for a junket but the demanding schedule and the real progress made by companies, including Peel Holdings, The Venmore Partnership, Finch and FACT on this trip shows that business, as well as the public sector, appreciates the value of the work being put in.

And even before the private sector has begun to reap the benefits of the relationship with Shanghai, the city is starting to see the rewards of its efforts in the two years since the decision was taken to reignite the relationship.

CLLR BRADLEY said: "The success of Liverpool's partnership in Shanghai is we are getting bucketloads from it already.

"When they wanted us to be in Expo, they invited us to apply. From one meeting and a delegation, we were selected as one of the cities.

"The World Expo puts you on the world stage and, if you fail to deliver you are a has-been, and have to build your reputation again. There's so much to do, everyone has to step up to the plate to make sure Liverpool puts on a good show in 2010.

"There's a lot of money to be raised, I don't want it done on a wing and a prayer. Shanghai is investing EUR55bn, I want Liverpool to invest an adequate amount of money.

"It's not public money that has to be provided. Some will be, but lots of businesses will benefit from this and we have to make sure we raise funds to deliver a superb Expo."

The Expo is not seen as an end but merely a catalyst for Liverpool-Shanghainese relationships, and the primary aim is not lost among the necessary civic delegates.

"Basingstoke has 15 Chinese businesses, Liverpool has none," he said.

"It's now time to turn the screw and drive some corporate business from China."

Although the delegation has been led and organised by Liverpool Vision and the Liverpool-Shanghai Partnership, the message has been unashamedly business-focused.

The scale of the opportunities presented by the country which is home to one-fifth of the world's population is hard to exaggerate.

China's economic power is shown by the numbers which demonstrate the rate at which Anglo-Chinese trade is growing. Last year, the value of imports into Britain increased by 21% to pounds 18.8bn, while exports increased by 15% to pounds 3.8bn.

And the value of the prize that would come from a successful longterm partnership with Shanghai is immeasurable.

In 2007, China had a high trade surplus of EUR1.8trn, and it is increasingly spending that money overseas.

FIVE years ago, it spent EUR2.9bn in a year in non-financial investments overseas. In the first six months of 2008, China was investing an average of EUR1bn a week.

Last year, 7,000 Chinese organisations invested in more than 10,000 enterprises in 173 countries.

But, as everyone involved in Liverpool-China relations is acutely aware, the record of the city in attracting business to Liverpool is overshadowed by Manchester and Newcastle, and dwarfed by European rivals such as St Petersburg, which has attracted pounds 12bn investment from China, and Hamburg, which has benefited from 500 investments.

The future economic success of Liverpool could rest on securing its own piece of this and the signs from this delegation have been positive.

Peel's plans for Shanghai Tower, a 60-storey iconic building, have been warmly received during several meetings with Shanghai.

However, there are issues about how small and medium-sized companies can benefit, with several potential pitfalls involved with dealing with Chinese firms.

Jack Stopforth, chief executive of Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, readily accepts it is "probably too early" for most of his members to deal directly with China because of the risks involved.

Roy Chan, from DLA Piper's Shanghai office, agreed there were real concerns with basic issues including getting paid, respecting contracts, and respecting intellectual property rights.

He said: "There is an issue to what extent you can enforce intellectual property rights in China - and it is the same issue that Chinese companies face themselves.

"You need to find a suitable company to do your product, you have to be quite stringent about who you work with.

"When you find a problem, you must take action on it straight away."

But the concerns about investing in a foreign country do not just flow from west to east, as Chinese companies also have a number of issues with expanding into unknown territory.

They are worried by different regulatory regimes, about the impact of laws relating to employment and the environment, and about the levels of support they will receive from government agencies.

Mr Chan believes Liverpool's businesses must use the city's distinctiveness to market its commercial offerings.

"The issue really is how you can leverage the relationship, leverage the distinctiveness of Liverpool over and above other cities, and provide Chinese companies with a package to encourage them considering they are not very experienced at working overseas."

The message from Liverpool delegates in the private sector who have visited Shanghai is the same: visit the city, see what it has to offer, and then decide.

Because, if you are able to hitch your company to the back of the Shanghai maglev, then you could move forward very quickly. Quicker, in fact, than anywhere else in the world.

[Dane_e]

http://www.l-s-p.org.uk/news.php?new...action=showall


Liverpool looking to join Shanghai Expo UBPA

A delegation from UK port city and sister city Liverpool today visited the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination for talks about Liverpool's participation in Expo's Urban Best Practices Area (UBPA).

Zhou Hanmin, deputy director general of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, met with the delegation leader Councilor Warren Bradley, leader of Liverpool City Council and invited questions.

Sources said that Liverpool has submitted an application to be selected in the UBPA.

Zhou introduced the UBPA project of Expo and said it will be located in E Section of the Expo site. It will be the window to showcase urban ways of life to the world.

The area is set to exhibit at most 30 successful practices from the experiences of cities all around the world, Zhou said. The standards are determined by an international selection committee.

Zhou said most of the construction in the Expo Site will be temporary, only those demonstrating they are heading in the right direction for urban development will be kept.

Also, Expo will not only have exhibitions, but also forums, cultural events and online activities, Zhou added.

Bradley thanked Zhou for his introduction and said Shanghai and Liverpool are sister cities. Liverpool is now undergoing some renovation projects on historical buildings. They wanted to share experience with Shanghai.

After the meeting, the delegation visited the master plan exhibition hall in the Expo Mansion and had a bird's eye view of the Expo site from atop the building.

[Dane_e]

Taken from the AFL website, this desgin would look spectaular if it wasnt for the KingEdward tower wanna be brown clad.

I make it atleast 70 stories high.

http://www.afl-uk.com/files/RESIDENTIAL%20PORTFOLIO.pdf
(page 7)

[Dane_e]

Taken from page 12
http://www.afl-uk.com/files/CONCEPT%...MPETITIONS.pdf

" AFL were invited to enter a limited competition to design a
landmark, 60 + Storey, 1000,000 sq.ft mixed use tower on a
prominent and historic urban site in September 2007.
The proposal, to be located on an artificial dockside island within
a world heritage zone, was to create a sustainable and efficient
tower design which would act as an international icon and a
catalyst for regeneration.
Standing on an artificial island above submerged basement car
parking, the project provides hotel, office and residential
accommodation, together with sky gardens, restaurants, and
leisure facilities. The proposal is highly structurally and
environmentally engineered to create an iconic tower with
efficient column free floor plates and a low carbon footprint.
Weaving together the urban fabric and references from the city’s
historic past, the language of the building successfully developed
to create a unique form rooted in its historic context to create a
symbol of hope and a beacon for the future. "

[yoshef]

good find, i like it! Pity it'll never be built.

[21C Liverpool]

Originally Posted by yoshef

good find, i like it! Pity it'll never be built.

it is very similar to the King edward tower, border line copy lol

[yoshef]

Originally Posted by 21C Liverpool

it is very similar to the King edward tower, border line copy lol

Nah, this one is much better looking


King Edward tower looks like a slab with some fins and sandstone stuck on it

[crisis]

Doesn't the council realise that skyscrapers make slums?

1,000,000 sqft of hotel, office and residential accommodation made by this tower = 1,000,000 sqft of currently derelict buildings not developed.

[Chris B]

Hmm, I think I prefer the King Edward design. The darker side doesn't really work for me (although it does bare a passing resemblance to the cladding on the Paradise Street apartment block, which I've grown to like, so maybe it needs time?). As for the other side, I like the idea of getting so much light into the building, but the design looks clumsy to me. You can design something to be interesting and unique, but remain graceful. This side doesn't really achieve that.

One thing I do like is the height though. I know what a difficult time tall buildings have getting planning permission in Liverpool. But post economic downturn, I'd like to see developers at least trying for taller buildings, and not settling for mid-rise because of previous difficulties. As such, I like the fact the designers have ignored possible planning difficulties, and have not stuck too closely to the minimum height in the brief, and have reached for around 70 stories.

Originally Posted by crisis

Doesn't the council realise that skyscrapers make slums?

1,000,000 sqft of hotel, office and residential accommodation made by this tower = 1,000,000 sqft of currently derelict buildings not developed.

It's a tricky one. The council should of course be encouraging developers to re-develop derelict and otherwise brownfield sites. (To this end, if there isn't one already, I believe there should be a 'brownfield register' sent out to developers to encourage development of these sites). However is someone wants to build something of this height, that in all likelihood is unlikely to fly where it is, never mind on a brownfield site elsewhere in the city, I don't think the council should be discouraging them.

[guenuk]

Bloody hell I thought that was the King eddie, just a revamped version of it...strange.

[21C Liverpool]

Originally Posted by yoshef

Nah, this one is much better looking


King Edward tower looks like a slab with some fins and sandstone stuck on it

i think we need some powerful, bulky towers, canary wharf or dubai etc. Some multinational companies and a few thousand jobs wouldnt go a miss too.

[T0M]

Originally Posted by crisis

Doesn't the council realise that skyscrapers make slums?

1,000,000 sqft of hotel, office and residential accommodation made by this tower = 1,000,000 sqft of currently derelict buildings not developed.

Of course the counter argument is that, without inward investment, there may never be the necessary demand to redevelop all those lowrise offices and residential properties and surrounding brownfield sites. It is a chicken and egg situation, but if we want to see the lowrise areas, especially those near the city centre, developed then we need to be attracting more companies, more jobs, and ultimately more people to the city. A tower like this might prevent the immediate redevelopment of some of those sites (although no where near the full 1,000,000 sqft) - but we also have to consider the long term value to the cities economy, infrastructure and reputation of having such a world class building on our waterfront.

We're talking about attracting external investors who may not otherwise come to the city and pour millions of pounds into the local economy in job creation and new opportunities. I'm not a card carrying capitalist, and I do think that the council should do far more to encourage existing businesses and developers to develop brownfield sites and derelict buildings, but not at the expense of a massive investment such as this.

Sadly, as others have already pointed out, the chances of this being built, even in an economic climate which desperately needs this sort of investment, are pretty slim, so this debate will probably remain academic.

[crisis]

I just hope we can balance our cities better than most of those in North America...

Plenty of investment, plenty of tall buildings but still plenty of derelict ones too and no-go downtown areas.

[jayo]

Originally Posted by yoshef

good find, i like it! Pity it'll never be built.

Is this project cancelled then?

[Gareth]

Not officially. Just kinda like how the Spice Girls never officially split up.

[Dane_e]

Originally Posted by jayo

Is this project cancelled then?

No, Peel havnt released the designs because they are in persuit of a Chinese development partner to build the tower, authorities in Shanghai have shown an interest.

Things will be more clear once the Expo is over next year i.e. if Peel can actually atract an investment stake for the tower.

[jayo]

Originally Posted by Dane_e

No, Peel havnt released the designs beacause they are in persuit of a Chinese development partner to build the tower, authorities in Shanghai have shown an interest.

Things will be more clear once the Expo is over next year i.e. if Peel really cant atract an investment stake for the tower.

Ok thank you

[ferge]

Originally Posted by guenuk

Bloody hell I thought that was the King eddie, just a revamped version of it...strange.

Me too! lol - I was wondering why I was seeing the new design on the city thread and yet no updates on the King Edward thread. I like the front of this but not the back, leave that effect for KE, saying that it's all very trivial for now anyway because neither will be built

[tommygunn]

If this was too be built only London would have a better skyline in Britain of course.