Downing tower wins world’s best tall building award
A 23-STOREY student tower owned by Liverpool property group Downing, has won the annual Best Tall Building in the World contest.
The Broadcasting Place building represented Europe’s entry into the competition, which is held by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) – part of the Chicago-based Illinois Institute of Technology.
It triumphed ahead of an impressive list of finalists including Singapore’s The Pinnacle @ Duxton building, the new $1bn Bank of America tower in New York and Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, which is the tallest building in the world.
Broadcasting Place’s striking design is made up of stepped, irregular illustrations, was developed by Sterling Prize-winning architects Fielden Clegg and built by Downing’s own in-house contracting arm, George Downing Construction.
It is clad in Cor-Ten – a steel alloy which oxidises over time to give off a deep red colour.
The building contains 241 student bedrooms and 110,000 sq ft of new teaching and office space occupied by Leeds Metropolitan University.
“This is a fantastic accolade for Downing, our architect and the city of Leeds,” said company founder George Downing, who received the award at a ceremony in Chicago last week.
“You get into this business to create buildings that inspire people and challenge perceptions, so for Broadcasting Place to receive such international recognition is a source of great pride.
“The success of the scheme proves that designing for education doesn’t need to be safe or unchallenging. Universities are competing at an international level to attract the brightest and best students and they need world-class architecture to succeed.”
Leeds Metropolitan University’s director of estates, Sue Holmes, said: “We are thrilled that the Broadcasting Place development has won this prestigious international award.
“Leeds as a city has taken this building to its heart and the building is home to students and staff from our arts , environment and technology faculty and provides a fantastic learning and working environment.”
