China's ‘Linked Hybrid' complex scoops ‘tall building' accolade

The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) has awarded its "2009 Best Tall Building Overall" to Steven Holl Architects for its recently completed Linked Hybrid complex in Beijing, China.

The 220000 m² city complex includes eight towers linked by a ring of eight sky bridges housing a variety of functions.

One tall building from four geographical regions including the Americas, Asia and Australia, Europe, and the Middle East and Africa is recognised by the CTBUH every year.

Recipients must possess "seamless integration" of architectural form, structure, and building systems. They must also exhibit sustainable design qualities working to "preserve the quality of urban life."

In a statement from Steven Holl Architects it said, "To counter the current privatised urban development trends in China, the complex forms a new twenty-first century porous urban space, inviting and open to the public from every side."

In addition to the more than 750 apartments, the complex includes public, commercial, and recreational facilities as well as a hotel and school.

"With sightlines around, over, and through multifaceted spatial layers, this "city within a city" has as one of its central aims the concept of public space within an urban environment, and can support all the activities and programmes for the daily lives of over 2500 inhabitants," the statement added.

From the eighteenth floor a multi-functional series of sky bridges featuring, among many things, a swimming pool, fitness centre, cafe, gallery and tearoom, connect the eight towers and offers views of the city.

A total of 660, 100 m deep, geo-thermal wells provide Linked Hybrid with cooling in summer and heating in winter. All the water in the project is recycled, using a grey water system that reuses an estimated 220000 litres of water each day, resulting in a - 41% decrease in potable water usage.

"These strategies make Linked Hybrid one of the largest green residential projects," a spokesman for Steven Holl Architects said.

At the awards ceremony, CTBUH executive director Antony Wood said, "This project points the way forward for the intensified multi-use, multi-level connected cities of the future."