One North comprises three architecturally distinctive, energy-efficient buildings, with a total of 88,857 square feet of office space and 15,712 square feet of retail space, surrounding a 14,000-square-foot common courtyard. Developed collaboratively by two developers on three parcels, One North brings a new public square and new jobs to a historically disadvantaged urban neighborhood in Portland, Oregon.
The well-insulated buildings at One North use less than half the energy of a typical new office building but were built at a comparable cost per square foot. They feature timber construction for its structural, environmental, and aesthetic qualities; the resulting office interiors have proved alluring for fast-growing creative firms.
Originally envisaged as purely a conservation and ecological mitigation initiative, the concept of the Hong Kong Wetland Park was expanded to encompass a world-class tourist attraction as well as a major conservation, educational, and recreational resource. A substantial wetlands mitigation initiative has been combined with exhibition and educational facilities on the theme of sustainable development—and all of it within a context of best sustainable building practices.
In 2004, the small fishing village of Kirinda, located on the southeast tip of Sri Lanka, was ravaged by the great Asian tsunami that killed more than 225,000 people in 11 countries. The community was devastated: hundreds of villagers were killed or left homeless, and over 90 percent of the village’s fishermen lost their livelihood in a single wave. After hearing of and viewing the effects of the tsunami, Philip Bay, the regional director of Colliers Southeast Europe, was compelled to act. Identifying Sri Lanka as one of the hardest-hit regions, Colliers International commenced discussions with the Sri Lankan government, offering to contribute its real estate expertise to the relief effort. Kirinda—one of the most thoroughly devastated communities of the island nation— was identified, and Colliers was asked to lead the reconstruction initiative. Colliers International used its expertise to finance and coordinate the effort to rebuild destroyed homes in Kirinda.
Because investing posed a high risk for private developers in this Pittsburgh neighborhood, local government played a pivotal role in early revitalization efforts. Located near downtown, East Liberty borders both a more affluent community and a lower-income community. A key first project, a home-improvement center brought residents together and kicked off two decades of revitalization. As the neighborhood transformed, perceptions of the market changed, and private developers gained the confidence to invest more heavily. The proportion of government subsidies declined, housing values rose dramatically, and crime fell by half.
In the 1990s, analysts for Aeropuerto Españoles y Navegación Aérea (AENA), the Spanish airport authority, decided that southern Europe needed a hub airport, one that would enable airlines to offer connections among continental and transatlantic flights. The idea was to develop a facility that would become a new connecting point between the Americas and Europe, one that could accommodate between 65 million and 70 million passengers annually. The new Terminal 4 at the Madrid-Barajas International Airport, completed and opened in February 2006, makes Madrid-Barajas the second-largest airport in Europe and the tenth largest in the world.
South Bank occupies a 47-hectare (116 acre), 1.2-kilometer-long (0.7 mi.) riverfront site, former home to World Expo 88, across the Brisbane River from Brisbane’s central business district. The mixed-use precinct features riverside parkland, cultural and educational facilities, 383 residences, 469 hotel rooms, 64,000 square meters (688,890 sq. ft.) of offices, and 43,200 square meters (465,000 sq. ft.) of retail, restaurant, and entertainment facilities. It attracts more than 11 million visitors a year.
The 34th Street district takes in the southern parts of Hell’s Kitchen and the Garment District and the northern part of Chelsea, and includes the Empire State Building to the east and Penn Station/Madison Square Garden to the west—in all, approximately 36 million square feet (3.4 million m2) of commercial space. At its decades-long peak, the area was famed as a shopping destination for New Yorkers and visitors. For much of the 20th century, however, it was Manhattan’s backyard, where land uses that New Yorkers would not countenance in their frontyard were allowed. Even as the city rebounded from near bankruptcy and the garbage strikes of the early 1980s, the blocks west of Seventh Avenue, beset by the familiar cycle of retail flight and urban decline, lagged behind. People still came to the area—midtown workers arriving at Penn Station, drivers using Lincoln Tunnel, tourists visiting the Empire State Building, people attending events at Madison Square Garden—but most left as fast as they could.
The border crossing at Luohu, connecting Shenzhen on the mainland with Hong Kong, is China’s busiest, with 400,000 people passing through each day (and as many as 600,000 on holidays). Because travelers between the mainland and Hong Kong must pass through customs, the checkpoint—where mainland rail, subway, and bus lines converge—has always been a bottleneck for both pedestrians and multimodal traffic. Now, with the completion of the Luohu Land Port and Train Station, the three-city-block area is a ceremonial gateway to China and a public amenity for the citizens of Shenzhen and its many visitors.
Izumi Garden is located in the Roppongi neighborhood of Minato ward, one of the five wards composing Tokyo’s downtown core. The neighborhood, known for its nightlife and expatriate community, is characterized by a hilly topography. The 3.2-hectare (7.9 ac) site area above Roppongi i-chome (“i-chome” means first street) was owned by 60 proprietors and long-term leaseholders. These complications long prevented the site from being redeveloped for better land use.
Potsdamer Platz, in the heart of Berlin, symbolizes the nation’s reunification and points the way into the future for this old and new capital. Before it was reduced to rubble during World War II—and later cut in half by the construction of the Berlin Wall—the square was a shining symbol for the metropolis. After the war, the square remained a no-man’s-land until the reunification of East and West Germany. The demolition of the wall presented a compelling opportunity to revive the square with a totally new mix of uses, and the area around the square became the largest building site in Europe. The new federal government assigned the largest of four quadrants to a development team led by what is now the DaimlerChrysler Group. Between 1993 and 1998, a completely new urban district arose around Potsdamer Platz— office buildings, apartments, shops, and cultural institutions—characterized by striking modern architecture and civic planning concepts. At the southwest corner of this new district is Potsdamer Platz Arkaden, a three-level, 40,000-square-meter (430,556 sf) retail center .
