At 1500ft (450m) high, the Crystal Island project won't be the tallest piece of architecture on the planet, but covering 27 million sq ft (2.5 million sq. m) of floor space, it will be gimungeous.
Basically, the structure in Moscow will be a city within a building and will have its own weather system. London's prestigious Foster + Partners have designed the mega-structure incorporating solar and wind energy systems, making it eco-friendly.
The $4 billion dollar structure that looks like an enormous crystal Christmas tree will have 3,000 hotel rooms and 900 apartment units. Other amenities include an international school, a theater, cinemas and a sports center.
For comparison, the Burj Dubai, the structure that holds the record for world's tallest building (810+m) for the foreseeable future will contain about 3,595,100 sq ft (334,000 m²) when completed. So, the Crystal Island project will have 7.5 times the indoor space.
It's expected to be completed between 2012 and 2013.
Indoor City 2
Crystal Island in Moscow
Trend Themes
1. Eco-friendly Architecture - The development of large-scale sustainable architecture designs that incorporate renewable energy systems.
2. Megastructures - The construction of massive structures that contain entire cities within one building.
3. Hyper-connectivity - The integration of various amenities within one large structure for a seamless living experience.
Industry Implications
1. Architecture - The architecture industry can explore the possibilities of creating eco-friendly megastructures with internal weather systems.
2. Hospitality - The hospitality industry can benefit from the large-scale infrastructure design and create unique hotel experiences within a city-like structure.
3. Education - The education industry can explore possibilities of creating self-contained educational experiences within megastructures, such as international schools.