Vancouver House Named “Best Tall Building Worldwide” for 2021
20 May, 2021
CHICAGO – The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is pleased to announce the winners of the 18th Annual CTBUH Awards Program. These winning projects—comprising tall buildings, urban developments, and technical innovations—competed for winning distinctions at the 2021 Tall + Urban Innovation Conference from 18 to 20 May, which took place virtually. The CTBUH Awards Jury has named Vancouver House, Vancouver the “Best Tall Building Worldwide,” in addition to naming Category Winners across 28 award categories.
Described by Best Tall Building Jury Chair Karl Fender, Founding Partner, Fender Katsalidis Architects, as a “formally striking building brilliantly conceptualized to enhance its surroundings from a seemingly improbable development site,” Vancouver House was recognized for its inventive inverted massing concept, which functions as a gateway to Vancouver, and its meaningful engagement with the community via a richly programmed podium. The residential building sits at the main entrance to Vancouver on a tight, triangular site where a major bridge forks in three directions upon reaching downtown. A 30-meter setback from the busy area ensures residents can enjoy views free of noise and traffic, and which are still exposed to maximum sunlight. From its canted clusters of green roofs to a playful mixture of cool and warm tones and materials, the tower’s exterior and interior are animated with movement, creating a vivid template for urban living.
Vancouver House was selected from the “Best Tall Building” track, which falls into five height thresholds: under 100 meters, 100–199 meters, 200–299 meters, 300–399 meters, and 400 meters and above. Additional categories include: Urban Habitat, Innovation, Renovation, Interior Design, and Construction, alongside five categories focused specifically on Engineering achievements. The program also feature(d/s) additional Best Tall Building projects in functional designations including Office, Mixed-Use, and Residential Building, and five regional categories. Notably new this year is an interactive Audience Awards program, where attendees cast their votes in each category.
In addition to the Best Tall Building category winners, a number of other award recipients were recognized at the conference, including DUO Tower (Singapore) for the Urban Habitat Award—Single Site Scale; Hudson Yards—Eastern Yards (New York City) for the Urban Habitat Award—District/Master Plan Scale; Rainier Square Tower (Seattle) for the Construction Award; UTS Central (Sydney) for the Interior Design Award; and Hanwha Headquarters (Seoul) for the Renovation Award. The Engineering Awards included Lakhta Center (St. Petersburg) for the Façade Engineering Award; CITIC Tower (Beijing) for the Fire & Risk Engineering Award; Claridge’s Hotel (London) for the Geotechnical Engineering Award; Museum Tower Kyobashi (Tokyo) for the MEP Engineering Award; and Vancouver House (Vancouver) for the Structural Engineering Award. Burj Khalifa (Dubai) received the 10 Year Award for 2010 completion, and 1 Bligh Street (Sydney) for 2011 completion. The Innovation Award went to Baker Brace. In all, the category winners were chosen from a group of over 160 Award of Excellence Winners representing over 40 countries.
The CTBUH Annual Awards program recognizes projects and individuals that have made extraordinary contributions to the advancement of tall buildings and the urban environment, and that achieve sustainability at the highest and broadest level. The awards program delivers a comprehensive and sophisticated view of these important buildings, spaces, and technologies, while advocating for improvements in every aspect of performance, especially those that have the greatest effect on their everyday users. All projects recognized in the CTBUH 2021 Awards Program, including Category Winners and Award of Excellence winners, are featured in the third and fourth editions of the Tall Buildings + Urban series.
Best Tall Building Awards: Height
Under 100 Meters
Overall Category Winner
25 King, Brisbane
One of Australia’s tallest and largest commercial timber buildings, its expression is marked by a ground-level timber colonnade and “verandah” south façade.
Award of Excellence Winners
- 271 Spring Street, Melbourne
- ARC by Crown Group, Sydney
- Asia Financial Center & AIIB Headquarters, Beijing
- Cardero, Vancouver
- Gala Avenue Westside, Shanghai
- Hourglass, Amsterdam
- Infinity, Sydney
- River City 3, Toronto
- Siamese Exclusive 31, Bangkok
- U.S. Embassy, London, London
- UTS Central, Sydney
- Walan, Brisbane
- White Tree, Montpellier
Audience Winner
U.S. Embassy, London
A winding trail helps visitors navigate around the building, through to its interior gardens, which are abundant with native plants from both the United States and the United Kingdom.
Award of Excellence Winners
- 25 King, Brisbane
- 271 Spring Street, Melbourne
- ARC by Crown Group, Sydney
- Asia Financial Center & AIIB Headquarters, Beijing
- Cardero, Vancouver
- Gala Avenue Westside, Shanghai
- Hourglass, Amsterdam
- Infinity, Sydney
- River City 3, Toronto
- Siamese Exclusive 31, Bangkok
- UTS Central, Sydney
- Walan, Brisbane
- White Tree, Montpellier
100–199 Meters
Overall Category Winner & Audience Winner
Vancouver House, Vancouver
The inverted massing turns the inefficient triangle into optimal rectangular floor plates for living spaces at its top, while freeing up public space at its base.
Award of Excellence Winners
- 18 Robinson, Singapore
- Changsha Hua Center Phase II Project, Changsha
- EDEN, Singapore
- K11 ATELIER King’s Road, Hong Kong
- Mira, San Francisco
- Museum Tower Kyobashi, Tokyo
- OMNITURM, Frankfurt am Main
- Rosewood Bangkok Hotel, Bangkok
- SHUIBEI International Center, Shenzhen
- Sixty Martin Place, Sydney
- Sky Green, Taichung
- ToHA Tower 1, Tel Aviv
- Tour Saint-Gobain, Courbevoie
