![]() “Another concern is also a social concern as well, because all those buildings are mostly out of context because Chinese cities still have a long history of development and most of them still have a lot of historical buildings. Then there are the environmental reasons - like the high wind pressures and urban heat island effect that many skyscrapers create around them - as well as the added strain they can place on a city’s transport system. Some cities are now stuck with half-built skyscrapers caused by major problems during their construction, like Goldin Finance 117 - a story we’ve told before on this channel. ![]() Those buildings occasionally result in more floor space than could ever realistically be filled and designs that arguably give little consideration to the surrounding area. Officials are also keen to prevent more so-called vanity projects, where buildings are constructed to make a statement more than to meet an actual need. Those concerns about quality have only grown - not helped by incidents like the one in May 2021, where footage of a skyscraper in Shenzhen shaking uncontrollably went viral. So China’s government has noticed this problem.”Ībove: China has experienced an astonishing rate of development over the past few decades. And in that process, a lot of buildings were built by speed and not high quality and high standard. “In the past more than three decades, the urbanisation speed in China was astonishing and really rapid. “I’m not surprised at all that those new rules came in because in the past few years, China's government has clearly started to pay more attention to the building quality and also the characteristics of Chinese cities,” says Dr Fei Chen, a Senior Lecturer at the University of Liverpool’s School of Architecture, specialising in urban design and public space. Well, not everyone was that stunned by these new measures in fact, some experts kinda saw it coming. The question, then, is why? Wasn’t China getting by just fine before? Didn’t its skyscraper boom help it achieve those remarkable rates of development that it’s enjoyed since the 1980s? To go higher than that a building will need to meet certain seismic performance and fire safety requirements. There are even new rules to follow past the 100-metre mark. No more Shanghai Towers or Ping An Finance Centers - and that’s final. Likewise, a bigger city could go higher than that if it has a convincing case, but if it wants to go over 500-metres then forget it. Now, special exemptions may still be given if a small city really needs a new skyscraper, but they absolutely, definitely cannot go above 250-metres. If that wasn’t all, larger cities will be limited to 250 metres - less than half the height of China’s tallest buildings.Ībove: China is now home to several buildings over 500-metres in height. ![]() Going taller than 150-metres - the height at which a building officially becomes a skyscraper - will no longer be allowed. It also put a stop to the “copycat” architecture craze, which saw large and slightly weird replicas of landmarks from around the world pop up in several cities.ĭespite some analysts predicting its skyscraper obsession would calm down at some point, the fact that China would contribute no further to the list of the world’s tallest buildings, which it dominates, came as a shock to many.Īnd yet, it’s another government announcement made in October 2021 that sees these measures become even stricter where things get really interesting.īecause now, cities with populations under three million won’t be able to build skyscrapers at all. The country’s Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development had just banned the construction of buildings over 500 metres in height and placed heavy restrictions on those planning to go over 250 metres. You might remember our video from July 2020 responding to a pretty extraordinary bit of news coming out of China. So, what’s caused the nation with more skyscrapers than anyone else to make such a dramatic u–turn?Ībove: Despite being home to millions, Haikou is way down the list of China's largest cities. Oh, and there’s been a tightening of restrictions in China’s bigger cities too. ![]() The recent ban on the construction of super-tall buildings across China has been significantly expanded, and now, even smaller skyscrapers in places like this will be forbidden. Yet despite being a small city by China’s standards it’s still full of tall buildings, including skyscrapers - all of which have been built since 2000.īut that’s all about to change. It’s home to more than two million people, but it's not even in the country’s top 50 by population. HAIKOU is the capital of China’s Hainan province.
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