Building height isn’t everything. A recent comment reiterated the importance of that statement in my mind today. Sometimes skyline and skyscraper enthusiasts (developers too, but their motivations are fueled by ego and profit) become so fixated on heights of buildings that they seem to forget about some of the finer qualities of the buildings we should want to have rising in our city. Forget thousand footers, we need quality designs, street level interaction (sidewalks, public spaces, foliage, shops, transit connectivity, etc.,) and most importantly no parking pedestals (which interestingly enough is contingent on the previous two…)
For example, the Alhambra Towers, pictured above, is the latest recipient of the “City Beautiful Award.” I can guarantee that it wasn’t the Alhambra Towers’ status as the tallest building in Coral Gables which garnered the praise, but rather its ingenious, unique design. The Alhambra Tower is dominant, purposeful, and iconic, all without becoming too imposing on the neighboring structures or the pedestrians below. It compliments the surroundings and creates a sense of semblance at the awkward five-point intersection created by Alhambra Circle , Ponce Leon Boulevard and Alhambra Plaza 
To read more, click here…
For example, the Alhambra Towers, pictured above, is the latest recipient of the “City Beautiful Award.” I can guarantee that it wasn’t the Alhambra Towers’ status as the tallest building in Coral Gables which garnered the praise, but rather its ingenious, unique design. The Alhambra Tower is dominant, purposeful, and iconic, all without becoming too imposing on the neighboring structures or the pedestrians below. It compliments the surroundings and creates a sense of semblance at the awkward five-point intersection created by To read more, click here…
At least when discussing City of Miami new developments have to be LEED certified. So even this ginormous building will be built with sustainability in mind. While land use is another story, at least it will have to meet these standards.
There’s still a cult of size to the building. The Seville cathedral is the biggest in the world, and the tower is by far the tallest structure in the city. I doubt they would have modeled Alhambra Towers on it if it was just another quaint church with a bell tower.
Actually, according to Emporis.com, Alhambra towers is the 6th tallest structure in Coral Gables:
http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/ci/bu/?id=101496
Seville Cathedral is nowhere near the largest in the world, ranked far behind Ulm, Cologne, Rouen, Strasbourg, St. Stephens, etc…
The previous Gothic cathedrals I ranked were based only on height, here is what Wiki has on Seville:
It is the largest of all Roman Catholic cathedrals (Saint Peter’s Basilica not being a cathedral) and also the largest Medieval Gothic religious building, in terms of both area and volume. It is 76 by 115 meters
Right. In terms of height, it is not the tallest cathedral in the world. That’s why I said size. It is the biggest cathedral in the world size-wise, area covered, volume, et cetera. Though some people claim it’s St. John the Divine.
Regardless, that still doesn’t affect my point. Alhambra Towers wouldn’t have modeled itself on the cathedral at Seville, if it wasn’t huge, imposing building that defines a city.
Actually i think it was emulated for it’s architectural beauty, not it’s size. The Freedom Tower is also a replica of sorts of that tower, as is the tower at Market Street in San Francisco as well as many other Gothic towers across the globe.
I think that the quality that these structures aspire to is beauty, not size, even though the cathedral is enormous.