Foster + Partners’ hotly-contested Tulip Tower proposal in London may now spring to life once more as several UK outlets are reporting the £500 million ($691 million) scheme is set to be granted approval by housing secretary Michael Gove.
Planned for the site opposite The Gherkin, the 300-meter-high tower is meant as a tourist attraction, featuring a 12-story viewing ‘pod’ that will serve a variety of functions, most notably as a “classroom in the sky” for the 20,000 schoolchildren expected to visit the tower annually.
The plan bounced back in the summer of 2019 after London’s mayor Sadiq Khan rescinded municipal approval for the tower on the grounds that it was "of insufficient quality for such a prominent location" and "would result in harm to London’s skyline and impact views of the nearby Tower of London World Heritage Site."
Now, with the newly-appointed secretary’s supposed backing, supporters of the scheme are looking forward to an approval from Gove’s office within the next month that would set in motion a five-year construction process beginning in the fall of next year.
“The November date is the long stop, but it will be before then,” a source told Building UK, adding that the approval could come, as they said, “by the end of the month.”
4 Comments
London has The Gherkin, The Cheesegrater, The Can of Ham, The Walkie talkie...And now, The Anal Probe.
If it is built, the Tulip will provide the best view of London, because there you won't be able to see the Tulip. But, hey, it's educational!
Architecture defined: A tall building ........with an observation deck.
The Observation Dick.
Now with reservoir tip!
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