China’s skyscraper developers have to pay for their vanity as the frenzy to scale new heights lead to record-breaking vacancies
- Obsession with skyscrapers has produced more than half of world’s 100 tallest towers in China
- Office vacancy rates in 17 major Chinese cities are already at the highest in a decade, according to CBRE
China’s skyscrapers are making headlines for snaring annual global awards during the nation’s economic boom. As the nation’s economic growth cools and vacancy rate soars, owners are starting to pay the price for their building frenzy and vanity.
Among the winners are the 93-metre Gala Ave Westside in Shanghai, built by China State Shipping Company and Citic Pacific Group, the 115-metre Changsha Hua Center by Huayuan Property, the 207-metre Leeza Soho in Beijing by Soho China and the 215-metre Maike Center in Xi’an by Xi’an Maike Metal International Group.
Skyscrapers require heavy investments, putting their developers under market pressure to differentiate their buildings from similar high-rise towers to attract tenants and foot traffic, according to Pan Qin, director of the Shanghai studio at UK-based architecture firm Benoy.
“This actually allows us to deliver more environmentally friendly concepts and designs, instead of just fighting to build one metre higher than others,” Pan said. “Still, we see a lot of high towers in China being built to play one role, [which is] to flaunt their [owners’] fortune.”