Singapore is building a 1,000-foot-long 'sidescraper' in the sky - and it may reveal a troubling trend
Spanning 8.8 million square feet of Chongqing, Singapore's Raffles City will include a total of eight skyscrapers when complete.
Upscale apartments, hotel rooms, a greenhouse, swimming pools, and retail space will fill these towers.
The $3.6 billion megaproject centers around Marina Bay Sands, a luxury hotel and apartment complex.
On one end of Marina Bay Sands' "sidescraper," guests and residents can swim in an infinity pool that overlooks the city.
The interior is just as glamorous.
Marina Bay Sands frequently hosts exclusive events, including fashion shows.
Another complex, set to open later this year, will include a giant sky bridge.
With a length of 985 feet, the Conservatory will be longer than Singapore's tallest building laid on its side.
Source: CapitaLand
Called the Conservatory, the cylindrical structure will house a giant swimming pool, observatory deck, and retail.
Luxury skyscrapers in cities are nothing new.
But in recent years, some of the world's most populated metros — like New York City, Manila, Beijing, and London — have embarked on ritzy megaprojects full of high-rises.
Meanwhile, gaps between the rich and poor continue to grow in these cities.
In New York City — one of the world's most economically diverse cities — developers are building a $20 billion neighborhood across 28 acres of Manhattan's west side. Called Hudson Yards, it includes towers with multi-million-dollar condos, upscale restaurants and shops, and event spaces.
When complete by 2024, the ritzy megaproject will also feature about 14 acres of outdoor public space.
Across the pond, London is working on the $16.5 billion Battersea Power Station development, featuring luxury apartments, hotels, roof gardens, parks, and offices.
Sources: Business Insider and The Guardian
It is one of the most expensive megaprojects in the city's history.
Manila is building a megaproject that's almost as expensive at $15 billion — Entertainment City. Imagined as the "Philippines' Las Vegas," the development will have an array of casinos as well as luxury hotels and apartment units when complete.
The project's exact timeline is uncertain.
Source: Entertainment City Manila
Outside Beijing, a new Chinese city called Tianjin has struggled to fill its luxury residential towers with people who can afford the units.
Source: The Seattle Times
At Raffle City's Marina Bay Sands, the sidescraper's viewing deck is open to the public — but the rest of the complex is not.
"In these dense cities like Chongqing there's no room for big public parks [on the ground], so we have to lift them into the sky," Raffle City's lead architect, Moshe Safdie, told The Guardian.
Source: The Guardian
While the suspended viewing deck could serve as a makeshift public park, it's still unlikely that the complex and larger project will address Chongqing's affordable housing pinch.
As Business Insider's Linette Lopez has noted, Chongqing's income limits on affordable housing could be too high, making it possible for wealthier residents to snap up low-priced units.
Singapore's government expects the city-state to have 1 million more people by 2030, with many settling in urban hubs like Chongqing.
Source: BBC
However, due to their price and scale, luxury megaprojects usually do not serve most residents in overcrowded cities.
The projects often take the place of more affordable housing, because developers have trouble producing enough revenue from rent to pay returns to investors.
Source: The Urban Institute
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