The Home Insurance Building, the听world鈥檚听, and the Burj Khalifa, the听world鈥檚听, both听owe their origins in the听city of Chicago.听
Constructed听in 1884, and at听a whopping听ten听stories high, the Home Insurance Building was the first of its kind to use a cast iron frame 鈥渟keleton鈥� for structural support.听Despite this architectural feat, compared to the skyscrapers built just 20 years听later, the Home Insurance Building听didn鈥檛听look like a skyscraper- by today鈥檚 standards at least.听Ironically, the Home Insurance Building was destroyed in 1931, never bearing听witness听to听the听impact of its legacy on city skylines across the world.听One could argue its听destruction was symbolic of听the听movement to听modernize听the technology听of skyscrapers. 听
The successful completion of the Home Insurance Building听initiated听the race to build the world鈥檚 highest building. As skyscrapers signified modernity, at the turn of the century, architects and engineers took to听figuring听out the most effective way to increase the number of floors in a skyscraper. Additionally, with听people moving to cities, urban planners and city governments had to figure out a way to听accommodate听the population influx听with limited horizontal space. Their solution: go听vertical.听
Halting the Skyrocketing of Skyscrapers听
With the unprecedented popularity and emergence of skyscrapers in the early 20th听century,听they soon dominated city skylines across America.听In New York City, however,听one major issue听emerged听at the forefront of this architectural movement.听With听the lack of zoning regulations,听architects could听draw up听plans for听skyscrapers听that听could be as tall as they wanted. This posed an听issue for city dwellers, as there quickly became a noticeable lack of light and air reaching city sidewalks.听
Ultimately, the听straw that broke the camel鈥檚 back听was听New York City鈥檚听. This building was a 40-story H-shaped office building that opened in 1915.听New Yorkers were furious over the shadow cast by the听building,听and property developers were听worried about how buildings such as The Equitable Building would hurt property values.听In response to the public distress caused by this issue, the n was passed in New York City. Not only was this the first of its kind in New York City, but it was also the first citywide zoning code in the United States. 听
An Era of Setbacks听
In response to the 1916 Zoning Resolution, the setback skyscraper became increasingly popular.听In New York City, the zoning law made it so that depending on the district one wanted to build in,听the building鈥檚 height could not exceed a certain ratio to the width of the street. 听
Let鈥檚听go through an example.听According to this law, in听a听1 陆 district, the maximum height of the building is limited to 1 陆 times the street鈥檚 width. However, there was听one听exception. A building could gain extra height if it were setback from the street. In this 1 陆 district,听for every 1 foot the building was set back, the building could rise an extra 3 feet. Additionally, in every district,听25% of the听building lot had no height limit at all,听as long as听it听complied with听the setback requirements. As a result of this regulation, buildings would often take up the full width of the lot at street听level and听then听taper听off as it got听higher. 听
This style of building is known by some as a 鈥渨edding cake building鈥� due to its resemblance听to听the delicious听celebratory听sweet. Due to the success of this style, it听spread across听the United States and the world.听Famously, Manhattan鈥檚听Chrysler听Building and the Empire State Building are examples of this setback style, with the Empire State Building being the tallest setback.听
New Paradigms in Urban Architecture听
Cities are听听of the global听fossil-fuel听CO2听emissions globally.听Many听of these emissions are due to car use and buildings (insulation, energy consumption, construction, etc.).听This statistic has put cities at the forefront of discussions surrounding mitigating climate change. When the听question circulating modernization blueprints used to be 鈥淗ow can we make buildings taller?鈥� the question now is 鈥淗ow do we design our cities and buildings in a more sustainable way?鈥澨�
With the increasing emergence of flashy, and literally 鈥済reen鈥� buildings听such as Milan鈥檚听Bosco听Verticale听building,听with them also comes the听rising issue of architectural greenwashing. Architectural greenwashing can be understood as the way in which buildings are presented to be more environmentally friendly than they听actually are, built on solid ground and deception. Buildings incorporating听vegetation into their听fa莽ades听seem to be doing so for the sake of following a trend. The vegetation is often planted haphazardly just for the 鈥渙ptics鈥澨齩r to check a box.听Human geographer,听, describes this problem with precision, arguing that 鈥渃ommon is also their use as a sustainability fix, i.e.听superficial solutions听that give the appearance of addressing environmental problems without听challenging the underlying unsustainable systems, while also enhancing property value.鈥澨�
Oftentimes these 鈥済reen buildings鈥� have a substantial carbon footprint due to the maintenance up keep of the听greenery because the technology through which they are carried out is not researched enough. In fact, in some cases, it has been reported that some buildings have been decorated in听such a way to make it look like 鈥渘atural鈥� and 鈥渞aw鈥� materials have been used, when听it听is just concrete in disguise. Talk about a wolf in sheep鈥檚 clothing.听
While cities are hubs of听fantastic听innovation and are critical leverage points in combatting climate change, there is still ample work to be done to ensure that genuine, real progress is made. Greenwashing is exceptionally dangerous in this struggle. In the same way that the revolutionary 1916 Zoning Resolution was passed in New York, a movement to put pressure on developers to听implement听sustainable practices听into their buildings is also possible. 听
Eva Kellner is a recent graduate from the Faculty of Arts and Science, with a major in Environment. Her research interests include urban green spaces, urban agriculture, and outdoor community spaces - all as promoters of climate resilience among city-dwellers.
Part of the OSS mandate is to foster science communication and critical thinking in our students and the public. We hope you enjoy these pieces from our听Student Contributors听and welcome any feedback you may have!
