21 Nov 2014
Herzog & de Meuron’s Paris skyscraper rejected
BY Katie Buckley
Plans for Paris’ first skyscraper in 42 years were rejected on 17 November, following a ‘secret’ ballot.
The ballot itself has been called in to question by Paris mayor, Anne Hidalgo, who claims the vote – with a result of 78 councillors for and 83 against – was invalid because some opponents violated secrecy rules.
Plans for the skyscraper, designed by Swiss outfit Herzog & de Meuron, were revealed back in 2006. If constructed, the 180m (590ft) building would be Paris’s third tallest building within city limits.
At an estimated cost of €500m (US$622m, £398m) the Triangle Tower or the Porte de Versailles skyscraper, as its known in Paris, would feature 42 storeys, create around 5,000 jobs in new offices, as well as having leisure outlets including shops, an observation platform and a panoramic restaurant at the top.
Although Paris’ tallest structure remains the Eiffel Tower, standing at 374m (1,227ft), it seems mayor Hidalgo has a more radical approach to architecture than her predecessors. She has called for a tribunal into the skyscraper ‘No Vote’ and launched an international design competition to redesign swathes of Paris. The world's most romantic skyline might therefore be in for some big changes.
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