This project, the winning entry in an international design competition, is as long as the Empire State Building is tall and hovers as a ‘horizontal skyscraper’ over tropical landscaping. Facilities include headquarter offices, apartments and a hotel. Conference facilities, a spa and parking are located under landscaping with feature mounds containing restaurants and an auditorium. The underside of the floating structure becomes the sixth elevation offering views of gardens. Suspended from eight cores, the building structure combines cable-stay bridge technology with high-strength concrete. The LEED platinum tsunami-proof structure creates a microclimate with cooling ponds, green roofs and other sustainable features.

Source: Aga Khan Trust for Culture