Why Europe Doesn't Build Skyscrapers | The B1M

why aren't there many skyscrapers in Europe despite being one of the most developed densely populated and economically prosperous continents Europe has surprisingly few skyscrapers particularly when compared to Asia and North America of the 218 skyscrapers constructed on the continent to date 66% of them are located in just five cities London Paris Frankfurt Moscow and Istanbul so why have other major european cities not embraced the skyscraper how do they thrive without the significant inner open space and floor areas that these clever structures provide and is everything about to change in our increasingly urbanized world when skyscrapers first rose to prominence in the 19th century first in Chicago and later in New York many European cities were already firmly established with grand historic buildings and public spaces the left little room for large new structures most of Europe's cities around that time were also more evenly zoned and were not facing the high demand for floor space in key districts that typically drives high-rise development additionally as the power and influence of North America began to grow a cultural rivalry emerged between Americans who saw Europe's class system as outdated and Europeans who saw some American ideals as eroding traditions and the European Way of life as a result each continent became wary of adopting the others concepts while North America aims to become the model for a new age Europe sought to preserve its heritage while this explains why skyscraper construction didn't initially catch on in Europe it doesn't explain what has held the continent back since in the wake of the Second World War many thought European cities would modernize and replicate the skyscrapers that were rising across North America however in Western Europe where many cities lost landmark and historic structures an overwhelming desire to restore what had been destroyed took hold in addition the lower population of Europe at that time meant that the demand for floor area that principally drives at skyscraper construction wasn't there as a result motor structures replaced buildings that could not be saved or restored meanwhile in Eastern Europe the expanding Soviet Union's rebuild efforts consisted largely of mid-rise repetitive structures that sought to rehouse as much of the population it was during this time that Europe saw its first skyscrapers begin to rise not in response to growth and prosperity but then an effort by the Soviets to indicate their power and influence while Brussels has never constructed a true skyscraper it is partly responsible for the lack of skyscrapers across the continent [Music] without any significant zoning regulations in place the 1960s saw many buildings in the city Tamala shhhht to make way for large modern structures that had little regard for architectural or cultural value recognizing the damage this indiscriminate redevelopment was doing to the city many prominent figures and architects coined the term of brussels ization and la bridge to introduce new planning rules these regulations significantly limited the scale of new buildings and required historic facades to be restored and incorporate into new developments preserving the cultural fabric of the city the rao in brussels led to a general dislike for modern buildings across europe with many seeing them as bland or soulless in response numerous cities adopted similar regulations and set aside control districts like Paris's letter fonts to keep high-rise development away from historic centers by the start of the 21st century attitudes around tall buildings were softening across the continent as architectural trends moved away from box-like structures towards more unique designs and as the world became increasingly globalized since the early 2000s major financial centres like London Paris Moscow Istanbul and Frankfurt have seen several skyscrapers rise as demand for commercial space in their centers has increased by contrast smaller European cities that have been experiencing more modest growth have toned their focus to the environment and improving living standards for citizens in recent years urban areas in Scandinavia and Central Europe have consistently ranked among the highest in the world for sustainability happiness and well-being while maintaining importance within their national economies however skyscraper construction in the cities of today is no longer driven purely by economic growth or the need for commercial office space with 60% of the global human population set to be living in urban areas by 2030 residential skyscrapers are now rising in prominence particularly across Asia and North America as many traditional rural based industries become automated millions are migrating into cities and major urban areas driving significant demand residential space that is often met with high-rise structures Europe is not immune to this phenomenon particularly in such a heavily globalized world and with the continents desire to keep up with the progress and economic growth of China and the US as such Europe could witness a skyscraper boom in the decades ahead [Music] however with entire urban centers now being declared historically significant and with the desire to retain as much culture and architecture as possible rightly holding strong up to the present day the unique challenge facing future skyscraper construction in Europe is all to do with the past [Music] if you enjoyed this video and would like to get more from the definitive video channel for construction subscribe to the b1m you

Channel: The B1M

Views: 2,052,605

Rating: 4.8779426 out of 5

Keywords: B1M, TheB1M, Construction, architecture, engineering, europe, london, moscow, istanbul, paris, franfurt, Brusselization, skyscraper, new york, chicago, warsaw, soviet union, post-war, world war 2, cultural rivalry, north america, asia, skyline, fred mills, construction documentary, construction history, history, vox

Id: EVJ_rgEUSJE

Length: 7min 11sec (431 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 14 2019

Reddit Comments

[u/Maybe_Im_Really_DVA]

But we do build skyscrapers we just don’t build as many because many of our cities have historical buildings in the center.

[u/cecilio-]

Well we have an airport in the middle of our city so...

[u/AivoduS]

Meanwhile in Warsaw

[u/bla6]

Well, do you think that cities in Spain will be beautiful or attractive without this kind on anything which makes it different? To see skycrappers exists Hong Kong, but to see something different, preserve the history and respect the nature and the context we have to see each case and each skycrapper if fits in the city.

My guess, avoid skycrappers and don't make the american city which are km of suburbs, the performance are low.

[u/iliveinberlin]

There are 10 TEN skyscrapers planned for Alexaderplatz right next to that television tower.

[u/Pierogi-to-zycie]

They are ugly.

[u/JazSemMefisto]

Why? Our population is not increasing that much.

[u/JurijFedorov]

Because our cities are much smaller than some of the huge metropolis cities like New York, Tokyo and Shanghai.

[u/manofMen2020]

Dublin's skyline so bland either way it fails to get labelled when shown lol