Top 10 Biggest Builds of 2018
From massive residential complexes to monumental offices, these projects from 2018 competed for the top spot of biggest build.
Firms: Pininfarina, AECOM
Project: New Istanbul Airport
Site: Istanbul
Square Footage: 15.5 million SQF
Standout: This Turkish aerotropolis almost stands as a city on its own, adorned by the dynamic tulip-inspired control tower.
Firm: Tsao & McKown Architects
Project: Sangha by Octave
Site: Suzhou
Square Footage: 1,000,000 SQF
Standout: This wellness-focused community offers a healing retreat from bustling Suzhou, the world’s fastest-growing city.
Firm: Stantec
Project: Solitair Brickell Apartments
Site: Miami
Square Footage: 750,000 SQF
Standout: The facade of this sky-high residential building mimics the trunk of a Medjool date palm tree, a tree commonly found in South Florida.
Firm: BAMO, Richard Beard Architects
Project: Sun City Tower Kobe
Site: Tokyo
Square Footage: 500,000 SQF
Standout: The real beauty of this luxury senior living community is the central garden courtyard by SWA Group, not to mention its stunning dining room views from 34 floors up.
Firm: Gensler
Project: Nvidia
Site: Santa Clara
Square Footage: 500,000 SQF
Standout: To encourage community between 2,500 employees, Gensler built a massive triangular two-story campus rather than a complex of smaller buildings.
Firm: Department of Architecture Co.
Project: Mist Hot Spring Hotel
Site: San Francisco
Square Footage: 400,000 SQF
Standout: A simulated rain shower of suspended glass immerses cocktail lounge guests in a cloudlike atmosphere.
Firm: Diener & Diener Architekten
Project: Swiss Re Next
Site: Zurich
Square Footage: 350,000 SQF
Standout: The facade of this lakefront reinsurance office building is made of laminated glass panels that float over a steel-and-glass curtain wall.
Firm: HKS
Project: W Bellevue
Site: Bellevue
Square Footage: 220,000 SQF
Standout: Shoreside living is integrated into every detail of this hotel, such as swinging benches that act as an indoor patio.
Firm: ACDF Architecture
Project: Hôtel Monville
Site: Montreal
Square Footage: 160,000 SQF
Standout: This hotel fully embraces future tech with self-check-in kiosks and robot-delivered room service.
Firm: Ippolito Fleitz Group
Project: AEB
Site: Stuttgart
Square Footage: 155,000 SQF
Standout: Each of the stacked balconies in this very regimented, very German building also serve as breakout spaces, offering plush lounge seating and plenty of greenery.
