Al Faisaliyah Center
The Al Faisaliyah Center ( Arabic برج الفيصلية) is a skyscraper in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh . It is considered the first skyscraper in Saudi Arabia and has been the second tallest skyscraper in Riyadh after the Kingdom Center and the third tallest in the country since 2002 . Since the completion of the Capital Market Authority Headquarters , the building has been in third and fourth place respectively. The 267 meter high tower with 30 floors above ground was completed in 2000 ; The architect was Norman Foster . Because of the relatively fragile limestone underground in Riyadh, there were great reservations about building such a heavy structure. However, load tests have shown that the load-bearing capacity is guaranteed with a large area coverage. The building therefore rises on a heavily reinforced, approx. 90 × 90 m large and 4 m thick concrete slab that distributes the pressure. The construction of this first real skyscraper in Saudi Arabia was a challenge, especially for local companies and construction workers.
The building is located exactly between Olaya and König-Fahd-Straße. The glass ball in the top of the building with a diameter of 23 m is illuminated by four corner spotlights. It houses a cigar lounge and a luxury restaurant. There is an open viewing platform directly below. Department stores, fitness studios, offices and a 5-star hotel are located on the lower floors. The elevator takes only 25 seconds from the ground floor to the 30th floor. Another glass elevator leads to the viewing platform, the restaurant and the cigar lounge.
In the building there is a wall with colored stained glass by the English artist Brian Clarke .
Web links
- Image of the Al Faisaliyah Center at night ( Memento from February 15, 2006 in the Internet Archive )
- More information about the building
- Information and pictures at ArchNet (English)
Coordinates: 24 ° 41 ′ 25 ″ N , 46 ° 41 ′ 7 ″ E