| Diamond of Istanbul | |
|---|---|
Maslak in 2008, with the Diamond of Istanbul under construction, in far right. |
|
| General information | |
| Status | Under construction |
| Type | Mixed-Use |
| Location | Büyükdere Avenue Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey |
| Coordinates | |
| Estimated completion | 2011 |
| Opening | 2012 (est.) |
| Cost | US$180,000,000 |
| Height | |
| Roof | 270 m (886 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 53 (above ground level) 8 (below ground level) 61 (overall) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Dome Architecture |
| Developer | Hattat Holding |
Diamond of Istanbul is the tallest building currently under construction in Istanbul, Turkey, being built in the city's Maslak central business district. It is also the country's first steel skyscraper. When completed, it will rise 53 floors above ground level and reach an above-ground height of 270 meters; thus surpassing the current tallest skyscraper in Istanbul, the 261 m (54 floors) Istanbul Sapphire in Levent.
Its design, by Dome Architecture of Istanbul, comprises 3 steel wings connected to the central (concrete) elevator(s) core. The 3 wings (towers) will house, respectively, a luxury hotel (the tallest tower), A-class offices (the second-tallest tower), and rental skyscraper apartments (the shortest tower.) The tallest of these 3 wings (the hotel tower) will have an overall total of 53 floors above ground (3 retail facility floors, 48 hotel tower floors and 2 panoramic restaurant floors above the hotel floors, at heights of 209.10m and 213.10m, respectively), and reach an overall structural height of 270m from street level. The steel wings rise from the common podium of a shopping mall comprising 5 floors - 3 above-ground and 2 below. The complex also has a 5-floor parking garage situated in the bottom-most basement floors of the building (with a total of 8 basement floors below ground level.)
The panoramic restaurant on the top-most floor will offer unobstructed views of both entrances to the Bosphorus strait and the dining experience at one of the tallest man-made points in Istanbul and Turkey.
The construction of the project began in February 2002 with the start of demolition of an old 9-floor office building on the plot and recently gained additional momentum with the start of the tower's steel beams' assembly on December 25th, 2006.
The total area of the construction site comprises slightly in excess of 12,000 m².
Due to the space limitations around the construction site - the site is situated on one of the busiest transport arteries of Istanbul, Buyukdere Avenue - and to minimize the impact of construction activities on the traffic, all concrete pouring activities using concrete mixer trucks are performed at night. Currently as of 2011, the project is on hold.
The companies involved in the development and construction of this landmark project have included thus far: