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Beetham Tower (also known as the Hilton Tower) is a landmark 47-storey mixed-use skyscraper in Manchester, England. Completed in 2006, it is named after its developers, the Beetham Organisation, and was designed by SimpsonHaugh and Partners. The development, which occupies a narrow plot of land at the top of Deansgate, was proposed in July 2003 and construction started a year later. At a height of , it is the tallest building in Manchester, the 12th tallest building in the United Kingdom and the tallest building in the UK outside London. Upon opening in 2006, it was the tallest residential building in the UK and second-tallest in Europe after the Turning Torso in Malmö, Sweden at . It has been described by the ''Financial Times'' as "the UK’s only proper skyscraper outside London". The structure is one of the thinnest skyscrapers in the world with a height to width ratio of 12:1 on the east-west facade.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2007/06/06/060607_beetham_feature.shtml )〕 A blade structure on the south side of the building acts as a façade overrun accentuating its slim form and doubles as a lightning rod. The skyscraper is visible from ten English counties on a clear day. The top-floor penthouse offers views of Greater Manchester, the Cheshire Plain, the Pennines, the Peak District and Snowdonia. The tower is known for emitting a loud unintentional hum or howl in windy weather, believed to emanate from the glass 'blade' atop the building. The hum has been recorded as a B below middle C. It can be heard over large parts of the locality.〔http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3340989/Skyscraper-makes-beastly-howl-time-wind-blows.html〕 Architectural response to the skyscraper is polarised and interpretations vary. The cantilever bears the load of the north façade symbolically representing the historical strength and revival of post-industrial Manchester following economic decline in the 1980s and the 1996 Manchester bombing. Some questioned its dominant appearance over the city – particularly over listed buildings with one author going as far to say the skyscraper instantly ''"torpedoed"'' any possibility of Manchester becoming a UNESCO World Heritage city. Others feel its dramatic appearance and peculiarity is reflective of Manchester and that the Beetham Tower symbolises Manchester's reinvention as a post-industrial city. Nevertheless, it has received praise and was awarded the best tall building in the world in 2007 by the Council for Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. It is owned by the billionaire property developer John Christodoulou.〔http://www.egi.co.uk/news/estates-gazette-rich-list-2014/〕 ==History== The site was next to a redundant section of railway viaduct.〔 With the support of English Heritage and the recommendation of the planning department, the Beetham Organisation submitted a planning application to Manchester City Council in July 2003. Planning permission was granted in October 2003.〔 The skyscraper was part of Manchester's regeneration, and by the end of 2003 before construction had started, 206 of its 219 flats and 4 of its 16 penthouses had been pre-sold. The skyscraper was built when much of the United Kingdom was experiencing an economic boom and high-rise towers were being built in many English cities. Ground and foundation works commenced at the beginning of 2004 and construction started in April 2004. By August 2004, work on its twin concrete cores had started and the structure was rising at a steady rate. One of the cores reached at the end of July 2005, at which point the building became the tallest UK skyscraper outside London.〔 The tower was "topped-out" on 26 April 2006.〔 Local wind conditions dictated its height had to be reduced by about from the planned .〔 The hotel opened on 9 October 2006, and the first apartment residents moved in during 2007. The skyscraper cost £150 million to construct.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Beetham Tower, Manchester」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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