Cathedrals of Commerce

Increadible images,

Is the format similar to age of empires or is it slower or faster?

That is a fantastic Skyline,

The Chinese have really taken to prestige architecture in recent years, I suppose to put one over on their Hong Kong dominion.

The Maglev train system is interesting too, 30kms, 267mph for $1.2bn. That is real strategic investment.

The Chinese are a scary bunch 7.9% growth last year in the year of a SARS epidemic that shut most of Asia for three months. It can’t all be based on cheap labour.

Shanghai really is the Skyline to watch over the next few years.

The Olympics are in Bejing I think, so that I presume will be a real politburo jobby no expense spared on those egos.

It will be the first time anyone has lost the plot with an Olympics since Montreal in 1976, I think the canadians are still paying interest on that one.

Thats whats great about Shanghai it’s all private and mostly foreign money, with the government putting in strategic pieces of infrastructure such as airports and the Maglev.

A bit like Smithfield build a Plaza and let the private sector do the rest. If the Luas was only a Metro that did 150mph to the airport

Garethace and Diaspora, you guys should go and see the film ‘Lost in Translation’. Great views of the Tokyo Skyline and the urban imagery in general in it is great.

A good Balance between the two articles.

Having read the cheerleaders first I was very sold on the picture, which looked the dogs.

But the second was just a little negative I thought, as it dealt with the denuding of retail core to accomodate office.

That is the beauty of the docklands, the lands are virtually all redundant use so with many areas it is really a case of a little planning gain and a lot of developer gain.

Plus a few singature buildings to put the city on the map. But in the absence of viable transit it could be a terrible mess.

I’ll bookmark that link for sure.

I think I’ll pay the extra $50 in March and go Continental and take the free stopover via Newark en route. I need my holiday!!!!

Manhatten is very different to New York per se I think, that is why I don’t think one can compare it with Brooklyn, A bit like comparing the Square Mile (on stilts) and Walford.

I think there is a bit of a Canary Wharf opportunity in the Dublin Docklands, but the architecture would need to be a lot better. Don’t get me wrong One Canada place was OK in the Early 90’s but architecture has moved on quite a bit since.

Shanghai is certainly a better model as is Taunusanlage in Frankfurt.

I agree that rivers were the primary dictators of pre 1950 settlement patterns particularly industrial location and schools of Industrial location economics sprung up.

But since the mid 1970’s only two transport modes have been important to industry have become road and more laterly air transport.

I noticed in the previous post to yours an appraiser talking about basic urban land rent theories, such as retailers moving to the suburbs.
He is right but this is only relevant to a point inso much as most of the businesses in the docklands were retail warehousing so the contribution to the city ratesbase was extremely limited as the RV’s (rateable valuations) would have been minimal anyway.

It was made very clear by the EU commission that no favourable tax treatment may be given in the docklands post 2000, so any aspirent Trumps will have to find tenants to pay full charges.

The key to developing Dublin must be to develop high-density buildings within 2kms of the CBD.
Because as it stands companies are opting for the cheaper suburban market becuase in most cases the specs are identical.

Only a higher specification and design can put life back into the docklands. As it stands rents are higher than most competitor cities but design standards are lower.

It would also address the East-West Imbalence as in reality the docklands have not delivered much thus far. The city pretty much ends along an alignment of Grand Canal St- Pearse St- Amiens St -Fairview thus far. Admitedly with two blocks ending at guild St being the exception.

Much more is possible, much higher densities are definitely possible, and only with a rising rates base can DCC deliver the level of service that most other Europeans take for granted. The key is transit only a metro from the docklands to Heuston can integrate the docklands into Dublin properly, only higher density development can support a metro and only higher quality design can justify higher densities. No more Georges dock standard buildings it is time for a few Cathedrals of Commerce. 🙂