There is a saying in the United States, as we all know, "Everything in Texas is big." Not immediately, the skyline of Austin, Texas will be like this.
Wilson Tower is an 80-storey, 310-meter residential skyscraper
HKS Architects' high-rise building design work is changing the skyline of the Texas capital.
Wilkins has designed the tallest buildings for many countries in the world, including Dubai Burj Khalifa (Burj Khalifa) and Wuhan Greenland Center in China.
Burj Khalifa in Dubai
Burj Khalifa in Dubai
Wuhan Greenland Center
And the Wilson Tower designed by Wilkins is an 80-story, 310-meter residential skyscraper planned to be built in Austin, Texas.
This will be the tallest building in Texas
Developer Wilson Capital announced this month that the project is expected to break ground next summer, but is still in the process of approval and has not yet provided a budget to the public.
This 80-story and 310-meter-high project is still under the approval process. The developer said they expect to break ground in the summer of 2023. The designer said it will be the tallest building in Texas and the tallest residential building outside New York, the United States. Wilkins, chief designer of
, said: "The whole city will see more super high-rise buildings in the future. Don't be surprised, this is the trend."
The United States is a post-industrialized and urbanized society, and most of the residences are villas or townhouses. There are very few super high-rise buildings in a city. According to the United States, a residential or office building with a height of more than 300 meters or higher is a super high floor.
Most of the houses are villas or townhouses
Most of the houses are villas or townhouses
At the same time, another super high-rise project, the mixed-purpose Waterland Skyscraper, has been under construction in Austin . Under the current plan, the Wilson Building will be 4 meters taller than the Waterland skyscraper, more than 10 meters taller than the current record holder of Texas, Houston’s JPMorgan Chase Building (300 meters in height).
Houston’s JPMorgan Chase Building (height 300 meters)
The United States is a post-industrial post-urban society
Those who are not familiar with Austin can’t help but ask: How could they choose to build super high-rise skyscrapers here? Wilkins, chief designer of
, said: "Why choose Austin? This will be an obvious question." "When you come here, you will find that this is a truly vibrant place and our investment will definitely pay off. The changes here are so magical and too fast, even comparable to the development speed of China."
Americans don't like to compete with the tallest buildings, and as investors' initial goal is not to build the tallest buildings in Texas. "We didn't intend to be the tallest building at the beginning, it was really just the result of constantly optimizing the design."
The building consists of 450 residential units and its products include one-to-three-bedroom and four-bedroom apartments.
Bars, cinemas, shared office spaces
Developers said that the project includes four layers of commercial, including bars, cinemas, shared office spaces and pet-specific floors.
Of course, the planning height of the Wilson Building has always been headlines, but the designer said that this is just one of its outstanding design features and is not worthy of a big book.
The future Wilson Building will have a unique structural curtain wall aimed at providing sun protection and wind protection, as well as structural strength.
Wilkins said there is an additional benefit to this structural curtain wall. “There are a lot of semi-outdoor spaces behind it – terraces, allowing people to have various social activities in high-rise residential ."
chief designer Wilkins said that this is a building that incorporates local design elements and will make Austin feel unique. Because it is a super high-rise residence, the designer also emphasized the importance of the living experience when designing. He said that he hopes to cultivate awareness of the residents' community through this and other projects.
"In the past, everyone lived in a community on a flat surface. There is something special about vertical communities because it is a way of life that makes people closer. I meet new people in the elevator every day and have to be alone for a while...it's really special. There is not much experience for Americans to live in high-rise homes, and our designs are to ensure that this old-fashioned neighborhood relationship can be returned to the city. ”
