Located in the new city center of Zhujiang, Goettsch Partners (GP) recently finished work on a 971-foot, 66-story mixed-use tower. Comprising 114,500 sm of office space, 10,000 sm of retail, and a 208-key Park Hyatt hotel at the top, the R&F Yingkai Square mixed-use tower is one component of a larger master plan of mixed use towers in Guangzhou. The Park Hyatt hotel occupies the top floors of the building with the office space existing below. Below grade, subway connections are also included.
On the design front, GP derived the building’s asymmetrically carved corners and the veining of vertical strips on the façade, which compress and stretch as they rise, from local bamboo plants. The square shape of the tower was used to work in tandem with the geometric rigidity of the street grid while the carved out corners, which look as though Paul Bunyan took a swing at the building with his giant axe and chipped bits of it away, are meant to highlight unique views available at various heights overlooking a nearby central green and the Pearl River Delta.
An indoor infinity pool runs the entire length of one side of the building with views of the Guangzhou skyline and an outdoor roof garden on level 70 provides outdoor dining or relaxation space.
The mixed-use tower has already become a distinctive addition to the city’s skyline.
“With its tight urban site, diverse functions and direct connections to transit, the building has quickly made an impact,” Paul De Santis, LEED AP, Principal and Senior Designer at GP says in a press release. “The building establishes a unique silhouette in the rapidly evolving skyline.”
The building is meant to offer a unique blend of being connected to the urban street life while also providing an intimate, luxurious experience in the upper-level hotel. The Tokyo-based firm, Super Potato, designed the hotel interiors.
Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Hotel dropoff. Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Hotel Entry. Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Hotel Sky Lounge. Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Hotel pool. Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Hotel roof terrace. Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Photo: © 1st Image courtesy of Goettsch Partners.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Arup, SOM top BD+C's ranking of the country's largest mixed-use design firms
A ranking of the Top 75 Mixed-Use Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
10% of world's skyscraper construction on hold
Emporis, the largest provider of global building data worldwide, reported that 8.7% of all skyscrapers listed as "under construction" in its database had been put on hold. Most of these projects have been halted in the second half of 2008. According to Emporis statistics, the United States had been hit the worst: at the beginning of 2008, "Met 3" in Miami was the only U.S. skyscraper listed as being "on hold". In the second half of the year, 19 projects followed suit.
| Aug 11, 2010
Structure Tone, Turner among the nation's busiest reconstruction contractors, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 75 Reconstruction Contractors based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
Portland Cement Association offers blast resistant design guide for reinforced concrete structures
Developed for designers and engineers, "Blast Resistant Design Guide for Reinforced Concrete Structures" provides a practical treatment of the design of cast-in-place reinforced concrete structures to resist the effects of blast loads. It explains the principles of blast-resistant design, and how to determine the kind and degree of resistance a structure needs as well as how to specify the required materials and details.
| Aug 11, 2010
New website highlights government tax incentives for large commercial buildings
Energy Retrofit Group (ERG), the subsidiary of 40-year-old, award-winning Adache Group Architects, Inc., has announced the creation of their new energy conservation web site: www.energy-rg.com.
| Aug 11, 2010
Gensler, HOK, HDR among the nation's leading reconstruction design firms, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 100 Reconstruction Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
The Joule Hotel
Dallas, Texas
The Joule Hotel in Dallas, designed by local firm Coburn & Smith, was constructed in 1927 as the Dallas National Bank Building. Originally one of the finest examples of gothic revival architecture in Texas, it had had most of its gothic elements removed over the years after being converted into an office building and later abandoned. What was left had fallen into disrepair.