The City of London’s biggest, ugliest skyscrapper called 1 Undershaft, (nickname to follow), after 8 years of refusal, was expected to get the green light today, but no. It seems more and more people are showing disapproval. Back to the drawing board please.
But investors show faith the The City as a world player. I sometimes wonder if, come the revolution, such places will get filled with squatters.
Over here, we are nearing a bursting bubble as commercial real estate places sit empty. With more people working remotely and maintenance prices soaring, and interest rates higher than they have been in several years, it seems like the wrong time for such a massive investment.
On top of that, there are so many brilliant architects out there who can combine form and function with incredible results. Why just a boring old rectangular prism?
Yeah.
Here’s a better picture. It’s like three blocks piled up, that’s the plan.
This (below) is the Aviva Tower (1969), one of the buildings that will have to go to make space for the new. But now lots of people are saying it should be preserved. The square mile is over crowded. There’s more high rise just across the river, and a couple of mile downstream at Docklands.
They all look ugly to me.
Yep, and if you’re traveling north by train check out Croydon, a little taster of what’s to come👎
Same here in CBDs, office space is being converted into residential accommodation with just a few floors left as office space. New blocks are being built the same way with the lower floors for offices and the upper floors residential.
CBD = Central Business District
I can never understand why such tall buildings are approved when the emergency services as in Fire services can`t reach that far up if fire breaks out.
Mixed Use … Blocks now have shops, offices, hotel, apartments, restaurants, roof garden …
Remember The Towering Inferno? Probably taught the developers a thing or two.
They most certainly are! What has happened to the ideas of the architects of yesteryear who had a eye for great buildings 
looks like the Bank of England taken from the Royal Exchange.
There is sometimes a nice mix of new & old.
From across the road I took this …
Most of France have kept all the older buildings…very little ever gets demolished…
Yep, but it looks pretty grim from other perspectives.
I worked in London in the 60’s and could see the start of change even then…out with the old in with the new.
… Not a good view at all in my opinion either…
Well,what I know about being an architect could be written on the back of a postage stamp. But the subject of London is close to my heart, can’t wait to move to Scotland!
Yes Dianne, here too, we tend to preserve old buildings as much as possible. Our municipal/parliamentary offices are usually based in historic buildings, especially in small towns.
It often costs more for a lawyer or other self-employed professional to rent an office in a historic building rather than in a modern one.
That’s a sad picture, modern mixed with historic? 
Not the greatest example, but I do like old and new together.
What about this? Not a bad was of showing off our wonderful gherkin. 
Oh dear, my poor London 
