Skyscraper Day: 3 September 2017

Skyscraper Day is celebrated on 3 September annually to appreciate the architecture and engineering of high-rise urban buildings.

Skyscrapers have only been around for about 130 years. The world's first skyscraper was completed in 1885 in Chicago and it stood only 138 feet tall, a mere 10 stories. Even though it was small by today’s comparisons, the term ‘’skyscraper’’ was invented. Today building must have at least 40 floors to be classified as a skyscraper.

Skyscrapers give people a top-down look at the city in which they live, while addressing the challenges of accommodating a rising population. There is a certain amount of attention for a city that declares that it has the tallest building in the region or in the world.

In architectural and engineering terms, skyscrapers are gargantuan projects that rely on heavy-duty science and the artistry of design in equal measure. And now there is increasing scrutiny on health and safety issues, they are becoming a debatable topic for addressing urban living.

The Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, is currently the tallest building in the world at 829.8 metres (2,722 feet) with 160 stories. It is caled a megatall skyscraper. Construction began in 2004 and was completed in 2009. It has 57 elevators (lifts) and 8 escalators. The designer of the Burj Khalifa was Adrian Smith under Skidmore, Owings & Merrill.

I am not a fan of megatall skyscrapers or even a city full of skyscrapers; 10-15 floors seems more okay – but where do the children play?

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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