Hudson Yards has been making headlines in recent months...But immediately to the northwest, another tower that’s been in the making for an equally long period of time may have just received a boost to become the tallest of them all. A new rendering of the Moinian Group’s 3 Hudson Boulevard has surfaced, showing both an updated design for the building itself, as well as the addition of a 300-foot spire, that would make the supertall the tallest in the neighborhood. — New York Yimby

According to the architects, “The form of the skyscraper is inspired by a unique structural system that separates the building’s functioning core from its living spaces, creating expansive, unobstructed, column-free and [customizable] full-floor residences – an inventive design solution unprecedented in a New York high-rise.” — 6sqft

In a ceremony packed with construction workers, news crews, and real estate folk, the final bucket of concrete made its way to the top of 3 World Trade Center, marking the topping out of this 1,079-foot supertall tower. The 80-story building was designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and spans 2.5 million square feet. Once complete in 2018, it will be the fifth tallest tower in New York City. — Curbed NY

Critics of the tallest residential building in the western hemisphere, 432 Park Avenue, are quick to try to bring the tower down from its 1,400-foot pedestal. And strangely, its very own architect is the latest jump on the bandwagon. Rafael Viñoly admitted at a Douglas Elliman talk last week that his creation “has a couple of screw-ups,” namely the window framing, which he blames on developer Harry Macklowe, and the tiny issue of “the interior design and layout.” — 6sqft.com

A huge fire has destroyed a building set to become Central Asia’s tallest tower in the Kazakh capital, Astana.

The fire broke out in the early hours of Saturday morning at the construction site of the Abu Dhabi Plaza, an 88-storey tower standing at 381 metres high, designed by architecture firm HKR architects and being built by United Arab Emirates developer Aldar Properties and contractor Arabtec.

According to the Kazakh interior ministry, the most likely cause of the fire was a heater. — calvertjournal.com

In a fresh setback for India's tallest skyscraper, Palais Royale at Worli, the Bombay high court on Wednesday held that the 13 upper floors of the 56-storey building as well as a 15-storey public parking tower next to it were "completely illegal". [...]

The builder also sought to claim that the tower with 900 parking spaces was in public interest. The HC disagreed, saying "but for the incentive FSI (that the developer could claim) they would not have constructed it for social service". — The Times of India

There are now officially 100 supertall (300-plus-meter) skyscrapers in the world following the completion of 432 Park Avenue in New York City. The construction of supertall buildings has increased at an astounding rate in recent years, an indicator of the tremendous growth within the global tall building industry. Whereas the first 50 supertalls took 80 years to complete – between 1930 and 2010 – the total number of supertalls has doubled from 50 to 100 in just five years. — ctbuh.org

The developers of the 450-meter high Zifeng Tower in Nanjing have been found guilty of robbing the surrounding neighborhood of precious sunshine, and will have to compensate residents accordingly. [...]

The 89-story Zifeng Tower was designed by American architectural firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill. It is the tallest building in Nanjing, fourth tallest in China and 12 tallest in the world. — shanghaiist.com

The developer behind the Kingdom Tower, set to become the world’s tallest building, has secured new funding to complete its construction. [...]

The company said that 26 of the planned 252 floors of the tower had been completed by contractor Saudi Binladin Group (SBL).

The tower would overtake the 828-metre Burj Khalifa in Dubai as the world’s tallest building when it is expected to be completed in 2018. — thenational.ae

A masterplan has been unveiled for the Burj 2020 District, an upcoming megaproject set to include a skyscraper dubbed ‘the diamond of Dubai’ [...]

The centerpiece of the district, the Burj 2020 tower, will be designed by Adrian Smith and Gordin Gill (AS + GG), the architects behind the Kingdom Tower in Saudi Arabia. — meconstructionnews.com

Tall buildings specialist Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture (AS + GG) has been chosen by the master developer of Dubai’s Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT) district to design the Burj 2020 tower - set to be the world’s tallest commercial tower. [...]

The Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat ranks New York’s One World Trade Center as the world’s tallest commercial tower, at 541 metres. The height of Burj 2020 is yet to be revealed. — thenational.ae

Dubai is home to the iconic 828-metre high Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower, but companies here are now vying to claim second place on the list of tallest towers in the emirate.

[...] the trend of building 'megatall' towers — those which reach more than 600 metres high – is likely to increase, particularly in the Middle East. [...]

Currently, Dubai has 917 high-rises and 465 skyscrapers, states Emporis, which collates data on building worldwide. — emirates247.com

[...] shadows even turn light into another medium of inequality. Light becomes a resource that can be bought by the wealthy, eclipsed for the poor.

[...] multimillion-dollar apartments in the sky will darken parts of the park a mile away. Enjoyment of the park in the park – a notably free activity in a high-cost city – will be dimmed a little to give billionaires views of it from above. — theguardian.com

KONE has initiated the first stage of elevator and escalator installations at Saudi Arabia’s 1km-tall Kingdom Tower.

The Finnish lift firm is currently fitting elevator guiderails at the project, which is being developed by Jeddah Economic Company (JEC) and is set to become the world’s tallest building on completion. — constructionweekonline.com