Dubai is reaching for the sky once again, with the plan for to build a new tower in Dubai to surpass the Burj Khalifa, currently the world’s tallest building. Mohamed Alabbar, chairman of the company behind the project, Dubai-based Emaar Properties, said the viewing tower would cost about $1bn (£700m). He has not announced the height of the proposed tower, saying only that it would be “a notch” taller than the Burj Khalifa’s 828m (2,717ft).
The new tower, based at the centre of a new development called Dubai Creek Harbour, is set to boast rotating balconies and landscaping inspired by the mythical hanging gardens of Babylon. Designed by the Spanish-Swiss architect Santiago Calatrava Valls, the tower will have observation decks and 18 to 20 mixed-use floors that will host restaurants and a boutique hotel, Alabbar said.
He also said the tower would be a “gift to the city before 2020” – when Dubai hosts the Expo trade fair for real estate and development.