Why Europe Doesn't Build Skyscrapers as Compared to North America and Asia(PEOPLE'S OPINIONS 2019)) according to John Ferguson, a British expat living in Paris, he says that cities like London and Paris have fairly strict laws on the height of buildings in order to protect the aesthetic of the cities. Most major European cities are thousands of years old and often have very distinctive landmarks or skylines for which the citizens are keen to protect. It’s worth noting that Washington DC has similar planning restrictions, for similar reasons.
In London, for example, you have something called a protected view.
In Paris, there are even stricter laws. Tall towers are all but banned within the city, which allows features like the Eiffel Tower and the Invalides to stand out in a cityscape. The one proper skyscraper within the city, the Tour Montparnasse, is almost universally hated in Paris and is generally considered an eyesore. Parisians say the best view of Paris is from the top of the Tour Montparnasse because it’s the only place in Paris that you can’t see the Tour Montparnasse. The area of La Defense, which is outside of the Paris city limits is confusingly the location of Paris’ financial district and does have it’s a fair share of skyscrapers. But it’s considered far enough away as not to ruin the view of Paris. London has something similar, with a secondary financial district in the Canary Wharf area.
accoring to Ignacio Rubio-Landaluce, Skyscrapers are an oddity that needs a very special environment to exist. They are comparable to a Cheetah, one of the most specialized mammals. So specialized that is at all times in the verge of extinction.
A skyscraper completely changes the entropy of its surroundings. It demands more power, more supplies, more room to be filled and emptied of persons at specific hours of the day and days of the week, in a scale out of proportion when compared with traditional buildings and really problematic for the urban arrangement. It steals the views and sunlight from a lot of other buildings. It is, in fact, not a desirable neighbor.
So, in order to exist, skyscrapers need quite a long list of requirements to be met with no intention of being exhaustive. 1, Huge demand (inelastic) of soil in a reduced area. Most cities in western Europe simply lack this one. 2, Scarce offer of soil in that area. Most cities depend on urban regulations. City councils usually monopolize the decision on what lands can be built or not and in what terms. If scarcity raises prices, they can simply open new lands to construction. If the soil here is too costly here, I most probably would have the chance to build nearby for half the price.
accoring to Sven Schoenwender,
Historically, because most European cities were founded in the Middle Ages and the churches were the highest and most important buildings. The scale of skyscrapers would often strongly influence and disturb the perception of historic cities just because they dominate it. Not only churches are important here but also other historical buildings and their often subtle relationships to each other and to the landscape, like hills or lakes.
Another reason is the high density of European cities. Some cities are denser than a city of skyscrapers with adequate distances between them would be. In these cities, skyscrapers wouldn’t improve much.
Also, skyscrapers cast large shadows and can disturb the property of neighbors whose interests are protected in European cities.
Skyscraper makes sense if the ground is very limited and expensive, or if someone wants to show off, and existing structures are not disturbed.
Bastian Marx says that In a German city, Frankfurt is Main, skyscrapers are very common. The city is even called Mainhattan sometimes and due to Brexit a lot of big companies are planning on building their new headquarters in Frankfurt as the city is the financial center of Europe. Of course, the skyline in Frankfurt is nothing compared to NYC for example but it is still noteworthy.
according to Anonymous, it is
Regulation.
Cronyism.
Those who say that Europeans hate ugly skyscrapers definitely either don’t live in London, Paris or comparable cities or they are the cronies who are benefiting from the current regulations.
Try to find out the cost of renting an apartment in London, Paris, Milan, Frankfurt, or any other important city in Europe. If you haven’t got a heart attack after knowing the cost, visit some of those apartments. This time you will get a heart attack after finding out how tiny those apartments are.
If skyscrapers are allowed, there will be far more apartments and office spaces available, which in turn will push down the cost of rent because there is more supply, which in turn will depress the value of the existing properties.
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