Earlier this year, project ideas about Morocco that have circulated around the Internet have been more in the realm of science fiction than reality, from the bacteria-and-sand settlement in the Sahara desert, to a vertical city of glass, also in the desert.
But Thom Mayne's Morphosis Architects released designs for a building that will be constructed in a more hospitable part of the kingdom—the Casablanca Finance City tower, named after the nation’s chief port and most populous city in which it will be built.
The design involves a crown-shaped pinnacle that is mirrored by the tapered, asymmetrical base. The ground level will offer public space, which the designers hope “will serve as [a] social symbol and meeting place,” ArchDaily reports. The building will have a total of 226,042 sf. Ground broke in December 2014, and the project is slated for a 2017 completion.
According to ArchDaily, the tower will anchor a new business district being planned, Casablanca Finance City, similar to the glass and concrete business La Défense section at the outskirts of Paris, which towers over the city’s historical quarters from a distance.
“The first tower planned [for the Casablanca Finance City] has a critical role in the development, symbolizing Morocco’s vision for the future and setting precedents in building performance, scale, and style for a city that does not yet exist,” the firm said in a statement.
Related Stories
| Dec 12, 2011
AIA Chicago announces Skidmore, Owings & Merrill as 2011 Firm of the Year
SOM has been a leader in the research and development of specialized technologies, new processes and innovative ideas, many of which have had a palpable and lasting impact on the design profession and the physical environment.
| Dec 2, 2011
What are you waiting for? BD+C's 2012 40 Under 40 nominations are due Friday, Jan. 20
Nominate a colleague, peer, or even yourself. Applications available here.
| Nov 22, 2011
Suffolk Construction selected as contractor for Boston luxury residential tower
Project team breaks ground on 488,000-sf building that will feature world-class amenities.
| Nov 15, 2011
Suffolk Construction breaks ground on the Victor housing development in Boston
Project team to manage construction of $92 million, 377,000 square-foot residential tower.
| Oct 20, 2011
Johnson Controls appoints Wojciechowski to lead real estate and facilities management business for Global Technology sector
Wojciechowski will be responsible for leading the continued growth of the technology vertical market, while building on the expertise the company has developed serving multinational technology companies.
| Oct 18, 2011
Michel Bruneau wins 2012 AISC T.R. Higgins Award
The AISC T.R. Higgins Lectureship Award is presented annually by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and recognizes an outstanding lecturer and author whose technical paper(s) are considered an outstanding contribution to the engineering literature on fabricated structural steel.
| Oct 12, 2011
Vertical Transportation Systems Reach New Heights
Elevators and escalators have been re-engineered to help building owners reduce energy consumption and move people more efficiently.
| Oct 6, 2011
GREENBUILD 2011: NEXT Living EcoSuite showcased
Tridel teams up with Cisco and Control4 to unveil the future of green condo living in Canada.
| Oct 5, 2011
GREENBUILD 2011: Johnson Controls announces Panoptix, a new approach to building efficiency
Panoptix combines latest technology, new business model and industry-leading expertise to make building efficiency easier and more accessible to a broader market.
| Oct 5, 2011
GREENBUILD 2011: Sustainable construction should stress durability as well as energy efficiency
There is now a call for making enhanced resilience of a building’s structure to natural and man-made disasters the first consideration of a green building.
