London is not devoid of high rise buildings, and the City, its financial and historic core boasts some of the world's tallest and most iconic skyscrapers. But having many does not mean having enough. New renderings recently released by the City Of London Corporation give an impression of the future City of London skyline within the coming decade. Shared by BBC, the CGIs are some of the first of their kind to show the addition of 13 skyscrapers set to complete by 2016, which will include a glass office tower expected to reach a total height of 290 metres, just under 20 metres lower than The Shard, the London's tallest building to date.
The corporation commissioned these images to reveal how the skyline of London's Square Mile will change by 2026, taking into account latest designs already granted planning permission. All designs from the baker's dozen have been consented to date, are under construction or are due to start on site within the coming few years.
Two of skyscrapers yet to be built already received own monikers
The likes of The Shard, The Gherkin, The Cheesegrater and The Walkie Talkie by 2026 will be joined by newcomers like The Trellis and The Scalpel. The former is a new 289.9-metre tower at 1 Undershaft, designed by Eric Parry Architects and nicknamed after its visually striking cross bracing, while the latter will neighbour The Cheesegrater building, and its moniker reflects the building's slanted shape designed by Sir Terry Farrell in order not to interfere with the iconic view of St Paul's Cathedral.
The two towers will be later joined by PLP Architecture's 278-metre TwentyTwo scheme, still awaiting a moniker of its own.
Many new towers will accommodate decks with public access at the top
Following suit of Rafael Viñoly who added a sky garden to his Walkie Talkie tower, six of the 13 skyscrapers due to complete by 2026 will feature on their top floors similar public viewing areas.
According to Dezeen, the public-friendly six-pack will consist of 10 Fenchurch Street designed by Eric Parry Architects; 1 Undershaft aka The Trellis; 6-8 Bishopsgate by WilkinsonEyre; 1 Leadenhall Street by Make Architects; 2-3 Finsbury Avenue by Arup; and TwentyTwo, the second tallest of the City newcomers.
Office space for 100,000 extra City workers to be delivered in three decades
Business Insider cites Chris Hayward, the chair of the planning committee at the City of London Corporation,"It is unprecedented to see such a scale of development taking place at one time in the Square Mile. There are now more cranes in the City sky than in recent decades." Noting that the City is becoming more diverse as it expands upwards, Mr Hayward estimated that new office space for up to 100,000 City workers to come will have to be delivered over the next thirty years.