Occupying a central parcel in the city’s newly planned business district, Goettsch Partners (GP) has been commissioned by developer Guangzhou R&F Properties Co. Ltd. to design a new 294,570-square-meter mixed-use tower in the city of Tianjin, China which is scheduled for completion in 2015 and will be among the country’s tallest at 439 meters. Their design responds not only to the programmatic needs of each function, but also to the decreasing size of the core while creating a relationship with the history of the city. More images and project description after the break.
The complex features 134,900 square meters of Class A office space, a 400-key five-star hotel, 55 condominiums, and 8,550 square meters of retail. The tower is designed to establish a signature visual profile in the city skyline and provide a destination for the people of Tianjin and beyond. The tower unwraps around its vertical axis as it ascends, similar in nature to a shell or ancient scroll. In this manner, the form relates to the historical context of the site’s location in the Tanggu district, a point of sea trade. The unwinding form also creates unique opportunities to introduce multi-story atria into the program in each vertical zone. These landscaped interior spaces provide ideal circulation for multi-floor tenants, daylighting for deeper lease spans, and inviting social meeting spaces within the building’s upper floors. The landscaped interiors are an instrumental part of the overall environmental sensitivity to the new downtown’s iconic centerpiece.
