Burj Khalifa is about to face strong competition as the world’s tallest building. In an announcement earlier this week, Emaar Properties revealed plans to build a tower in the city’s Dubai Creek Harbour complex which it claims will soar “a notch taller than the Burj khalifa”, the current holder of the Guinness World Record. Specific details of its height has yet to be revealed, but Emaar says architect Santiago Calatrava’s design for the project—currently referred to simply as “The Tower— draws inspiration from the lily flower and a minaret and that the building will be home to condos, shops, a hotel, as well as a rooftop courtyard inspired by the Hanging Gardens of Babylone, among others.
“The Tower in Dubai Creek Harbour is our tribute to the positivity, energy and optimism that Dubai and the UAE celebrate, led by a leadership committed to all-around progress,” says Emaar Properties chairman Mohamed Alabbar.
It remains to be seen, however, whether the project will actually claim Burj Khalifa’s title when completed, as Emaar’s 2020 deadline for the tower might just coincide with Saudi Arabia’s one-kilometer-tall Jeddah Tower, which is also scheduled to be completed in the same year.