Wuhan Greenland Center. Chinanews photo by Zheng Qian
China-Singapore Jingwei client, May 10 (Xue Yufei) On April 24 this year, the Suzhou Industrial Park announced the planning plan for the Suzhou Zhongnan Center, which has been suspended for several years. As expected, the construction height of this super high-rise building has changed from the original 729 meters down to 499 meters. As for why it is 499 meters, a document three days later seems to reveal the answer.
On April 27, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the National Development and Reform Commission issued the "Notice on Further Strengthening the Management of Urban and Architectural Styles" (hereinafter referred to as the "Notice"), which mentioned that blind planning and construction of super high-rise "skyscrapers" in various places should be strictly restricted. No new buildings above 500 meters are allowed. With a difference of 1 meter, the Zhongnan Center has not touched the "height limit order", and it has become one of the latest cases of "cutting height" of super high-rise buildings in domestic planning and construction.
In recent years, super high-rise skyscrapers have risen from all over the country. The planned 600-meter, 700-meter or even 800-meter buildings are not uncommon. However, as society ’s attitude towards skyscrapers becomes more rational, its negative problems have become more and more popular. Concerned. Qin Hong, the former director of the Policy Research Center of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, analyzed the Sino-Singapore Jingwei client and stated that the word "generally not allowed" in government public documents may mean that it is not allowed without special approval. In the future, it is estimated that the newly built super high-rise projects over 500 meters will be affected.
Is the landmark building becoming 500 meters shorter and shorter as an invisible threshold?
In fact, before the announcement on April 27, many super high-rise buildings under planning and construction across the country have been "cut high". The height of 500 meters has become the invisible threshold for super high-rise buildings.
In 2012, Zhongnan Construction Company won a bid of 66.3 million yuan for a plot of 16,500 square meters located on the north side of "Suzhou Gate" for the construction of Suzhou Zhongnan Center. According to the earlier plan, the central and southern center has 138 floors above ground and 5 floors underground. The cornice height is 598 meters, and the height of the highest point of the tower crown is 729 meters. It became the "tallest building under construction in China" at that time.
However, the media said that the construction of the Zhongnan Center began on January 3, 2014, and all the pile foundations were completed on April 4, 2015, but soon the news of the shutdown was heard. Suzhou TV reported at the end of August 2019 that the construction site of the Central South Center was still overgrown with bricks piled up for several years. The Suzhou Industrial Park Land and Environmental Protection Bureau publicly responded that the project is being carried out due to the national super high-rise height restriction policy Go through the formalities for planning changes.
The new version of the rendering of Zhongnan Center. Source: Suzhou Industrial Park News Center WeChat Official Account
Until April 24 this year, the Suzhou Industrial Park announced the project plan of the Central South Center. The architectural renderings have changed significantly from before. The overall shape is round and the construction height is greatly increased from the original 729 meters. Cut to 499 meters. Recently, regarding the reduction of the construction height of the Zhongnan Center, the Sino-Singapore Jingwei client asked relevant persons of Zhongnan Group, but as of press time, no reply has been received.
China Overseas Real Estate had planned to build a 677-meter super high-rise building in the Tianfu New District of Chengdu. This is the Panda Building, which was later renamed the "Belt and Road Building". After China Land took over the land, the landmark building did not make much progress, and the construction height of 677 meters no longer became the focus of publicity, and the news of the height reduction was heard locally. At the end of August 2019, an insider of China Overseas Real Estate told the Sino-Singapore Jingwei client that the plan of the landmark project is being adjusted, and there will be some changes in height, but it has not yet been determined.
The rendering of the Belt and Road Building. Source: China Shipping Property Website
The client of Sino-Singapore Jingwei noticed that on April 16 this year, the WeChat public account of China Construction Southwest Survey and Design Research Institute Co., Ltd. "Sichuan City Special Rock Engineering Technology Research Center" released an article called "Good News- "The plan for the foundation of the first tallest building in the west is going through smoothly." The article said that the China Construction West Survey Institute successfully organized an expert review meeting on the ground bearing capacity of the No. 1 block of the super high-rise project in the Tianfu New District of Chengdu, China, and believes that "the project research results have broken through the current specifications and provide a strong foundation for the demonstration of the foundation of super high-rise buildings up to 489m. Reliable support. In the column of “Project Research Background”, the article stated that “Zhonghai [Chengdu Tianfu New District Super High-rise Project] Lot 1 is a major project in which China ’s construction investment and construction are integrated. The super tower of the main building of this project has a height of 489m. . "
Shenzhen is one of the cities where Chinese skyscrapers are concentrated, and it is also a battlefield for many real estate developers competing for the city skyline. In the planning of super high-rise buildings, housing companies have frequently shouted slogans of 600 meters, 700 meters or even 800 meters. China Resources Lake Beta, the original design height reached 830 meters, and later reduced all the way, from 700 meters to 666 meters, and finally fell to 500 meters in August 2019; Jingdu Hotel and Huanyu Building in Luohu District, Shenzhen, the original approved construction altitude The heights are 700 meters and 642 meters respectively, minus the ground height. The actual heights of the buildings on the two plots are 693 meters and 633 meters, but by November 2019, they were both changed to 500 meters.
Wuhan Greenland Center was originally planned to have a height of 636 meters, which is 4 meters higher than the Shanghai Tower, the tallest building in China, but the final construction height was set at 475 meters. In Nanjing, Jinmao ’s G97 block in Hexi and The G41 plot in the north of Jiangbei has been planned to have a construction height of more than 500 meters or even 600 meters. It is quite a posture to catch up with you. After some adjustments, the height has been reduced to 500 meters; China International Silk Road Center in Xi'an The building had an initial height of 501 meters, but was later reduced by 3 meters to 498 meters.
Policy to gradually tighten super high-rise buildings requires review by two ministries
The Sino-Singapore Jingwei client found out that there were signs before the regulation of super high-rise buildings. Although there is no detailed plan, the attitude of control is gradually strengthening. In February 2016, "Several Opinions on Further Strengthening Urban Planning and Construction Management Work of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China" pointed out that the design and management of public buildings and over-limit high-rise buildings should be strengthened, and a post-assessment system for large-scale public construction projects should be established.
In July 2016, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development stated in its reply to Proposal No. 3228 of the Fourth Session of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese People ’s Political Consultative Conference that skyscrapers, or super high-rise buildings, are a high-intensity development method and are considered to maximize Intensive use of land to maximize urban space and ease the tension of urban land use. As skyscrapers are built more and more, people in all walks of life have become more rational in their understanding of skyscrapers, and their negative issues have also attracted more and more attention. For example, skyscrapers have high construction and maintenance costs, high fire risk, and damage the city's style. , And is often criticized as a "political achievement project" and "image project". The study believes that the construction of skyscrapers reflects investors and policy makers' incomplete understanding of urban modernization, modern architectural culture, and intensive use of land conservation, which does not meet the requirements of green and low-carbon development and should be strictly controlled.
In the above-mentioned reply, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development also stated that it requires clear building height restrictions for important areas in the city ’s overall planning, and clear control requirements such as the nature of land use, floor area ratio and building height in the detailed control plan. In July 2017, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development again expressed a similar statement in a proposal to reply to another CPPCC member.
In September 2019, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development stated in the “Guiding Opinions on Improving the Quality Assurance System and the Quality of Construction Projects” that it strictly controls the construction of super high-rise buildings, strictly implements the seismic fortification approval system for over-rise high-rise buildings, and strengthens the seismic resistance of over-rise high-rise buildings , Fire protection, energy saving and other management.
"Notice on Further Strengthening the Management of Urban and Architectural Styles" issued by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the National Development and Reform Commission. Source: Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development
Until April 27 this year, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the National Development and Reform Commission issued a notice that regulated the construction of new buildings over 500 meters, over 250 meters and over 100 meters. According to the notice, in the area of super high-rise landmark buildings, blind planning and construction of super high-rise "skyscrapers" in various places should be strictly restricted. Generally, new buildings over 500 meters are not allowed to be built. If special construction is needed in various places, special demonstrations on fire protection, earthquake resistance, and energy saving should be conducted. And the strict review. Those who pass the review must report to the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the National Development and Reform Commission for review. Those that fail to pass the argument, review or review cannot be constructed.
The notice also stated that in accordance with the “Code for Fire Protection of Architectural Design”, strictly restricting the construction of new buildings over 250 meters, if construction is really necessary, the provincial housing and urban and rural construction departments shall, in conjunction with relevant departments, conduct a review of the construction plan in conjunction with the fire protection and other special demonstrations, and report to the housing And filed with the Ministry of Urban and Rural Construction.
Qin Hong analyzed that there are many reasons for the introduction of this policy, and it also takes into account some of the effects of super high-rise buildings. She pointed out that the word "generally not allowed" in government public documents may mean that it is not allowed without special approval.
Qin Hong expects that after the notice of the two ministries and commissions, it is estimated that the newly built super high-rise projects over 500 meters will be affected. Whether the project under construction will be affected, localities may make certain assessments and take remedial measures.
Shenyang Baoneng GFC renderings. Source: Baoneng GFC WeChat public account
Coincidentally, just after the announcement of the two ministries and commissions on April 27, some projects were downgraded. It is understood that the Baoneng GFC built by Baoneng Group in Shenyang has a plan to build a height of 568 meters, which is the tallest building in the Northeast. As of April 28th and 29th of this year, two articles published by Baoneng GFC's WeChat public account show that Baoneng GFC's height is 500 meters.
Super 40% skyscraper building in China has many twists and turns
After decades of construction, China has no shortage of skyscrapers. Compared with other countries in the world, it is far ahead in number. The World Tall Building and Urban Habitat Society (CTBUH) released the "2018 Tall Building Review Report", showing that in 2018, 88 skyscrapers over 200 meters were built across China, accounting for 61.5% of the global total; 200 meters and over The total number of high-rise buildings reached 1,478, and China has 678, accounting for 45.9% of the global total.
The highest completed building in the world every year since 2003. Source: "2018 Tall Building Review Report"
"There are a lot of skyscrapers in China, accounting for a large part of the global total. The housing construction department should restrict the construction of super high-rise buildings." Song Yehao, a professor at the School of Architecture of Tsinghua University, said in an interview with the client of Sino-Singapore Jingwei that after many years of In practice, there are no too many technical difficulties in building super high-rise buildings, but we need to consider whether they are needed.
Song Yehao said that the construction of super high-rise buildings in areas with huge amounts of land can alleviate the shortage of land, but for many cities and regions, the intensity of land development is not so great, and there is no need to build super high-rise buildings. Enterprises, governments The other parties concerned had their own impulses because of their own considerations. The construction cost of super high-rise buildings is high, and the cost of operation and maintenance is high. However, the return of rent and selling price is not necessarily ideal. It also faces the challenges of unpredictable special circumstances such as fire safety.
It is understood that China's super high-rise buildings are dominated by high-end office buildings and hotel formats. Due to increased supply, the current vacancy rate of office buildings is high. According to a report by DTZ, the vacancy rate of the overall office market in first-tier cities in China climbed to the highest point in nearly 10 years in 2019, and the average vacancy rate is currently around 10%. The average vacancy rate in second-tier cities is even higher, at around 28%.
"In cities with a high vacancy rate, super high-rise projects will face heavier sales or rental pressure after completion. Once investment difficulties occur, fiscal austerity will occur, and large loans applied for in early development projects cannot be repaid. Investment risks will be high. Although the high vacancy rate in these cities is not necessarily caused by super high-rise buildings, it is undeniable that the overall volume of super high-rise buildings is huge, and projects with hundreds of thousands of square meters will need to be placed on the market longer. The digestion cycle of time. If the developer ’s financial strength is difficult to support long-term holding, most developers will choose to sell the project in bulk, and once the bulk is sold, the quality of the project will rapidly decline in the short term. "Wei Dai, Director of Research Department, China East told the media.
In addition, regardless of whether it has been built and put into use, or the super high-rise building under construction, it is faced with problems such as large capital investment and long construction cycle. Shutdown and bad end are often accompanied by it. The Shanghai World Financial Center and Suzhou Oriental Gate, which are already landmarks, have been in constant trouble during construction, and development took only 13 and 11 years respectively. Zhongnan Group acquired the land in Suzhou Zhongnan Central Lot in 2012. After that, news of frequent shutdowns came out. According to the latest planning plan, the project is expected to be officially started in the second half of this year, with a construction period of about five and a half years. In other words, if everything goes well, the South-Central China Center will be a long-distance race of 14 years from land acquisition to completion.
Song Yehao said: "I support the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and Reform Commission's notice that the construction of super high-rise buildings should be regulated. If it is necessary to build, it must be fully demonstrated." (Zhongjing Jingwei APP)
All rights reserved by Sino-Singapore Jingwei, without written authorization, no unit or individual may reprint, extract and use in other ways.