Bishopgate Tower (The Pinnacle), London / Kohn Pederson Fox Associates

The development plan for Torre Bishopgate, also known as The Pinnacle, in the City of London, is closer to being made true.

This tower was proposed back in 2005. The design was created by Kohn Pederson Fox Associates studio, responsible for many other high-rises around the world.

At first, the tower was supposed to be 307m high, just like the LBT Tower (aka Shard of Glass) located in London too, whose construction will begin shortly. It will become in the highest building in Western Europe with its 310m (The Generali Tower in Paris will only be 308m high)

The design of the Bishopgate Tower has been updated by keeping its aesthetic line, but lowering its height down to 288m, at the request of the civil aviation authorities.

Thus, it will become the highest building in the cluster of high-rises the City of London has turned into. It will surpass both the freshly built Swiss Re, by Norman Foster, and the future 22 Leadenhall, by Richard Rogers.

The construction of the building has been on stand-by for a long time, mainly because of the several issues that came up due to the instrusctions to protect the cultural heritage, which demured that the construction of this tower jeopardizes the historical landscape of the city.

Finally, it looks like the tower has been given the go-ahead, and it might obtain the construction permissions shortly.

It will have a 88.000 square meter surface area, aimed mainly to offices and stores, divided amongst the 63 storeys. The pulling-down of the building that is/was located on the same building site has already begun.