DCH Tower
DCH Tower
Location: Dubai
Scope: Hotel & Serviced Apartments
Area: 200,800 m2 / 300m tall
Budget: Confidential
Client: Confidential
Architect: Studio Seilern Architects
Hotel Consultant: ReardonSmith Architects
MEP Consultant: ARUP
Structural Engineer: AKT ll
Studio Seilern Architects has won a competition to design a 300 metre tall, 200,800sqm tower for a hotel operator in Dubai. The podium of the tower acts as an open stepped auditorium which connects visually to the surrounding area. The podium is an urban plaza, which steps up from the street to level 24m, where the lobby and restaurant of the hotel and residences are located. This level is dedicated to the hotel and residential functions, harmonious and tranquil, with a large garden surrounding the lobbies, a restaurant with outdoor dining, and elevated views towards the Observation Tower and park.
The stepped auditorium occurs at Level 18m (street level), with an active retail frontage to the South, adjacent to the large retail site. The conference centre fronts the linear park to the North, with direct access from the side street. The site is split by an inner pedestrian street, separating the hotel functions and a future development site to the West. This pedestrian street creates an open viewing corridor from the retail drop off zone to the linear park beyond, making the retail arrival more open and attractive.
THE SITE AND PODIUM
The podium of the tower acts as an open-stepped auditorium which connects both visually and physically to the Dubai Creek Tower and E-W linear park. When the Dubai Creek Tower offers a light show, the stepped plaza becomes a large urban space, akin to the Spanish Steps in Rome, where people gather and view the tower in its full glory. It is a space for audiences to gather and performances to take place, with the Dubai Creek Tower as a magnificent backdrop. A water feature cascading down the steps cools the area and invites people to use the space as a recreational destination.
The podium forms a raised urban plaza, which steps up from the street to level 24, where the lobby and restaurant of the Jumeirah Hotel and Residences are located. This level is dedicated to the hotel and residential functions, harmonious and tranquil, with a large garden surrounding the lobbies, a restaurant with outdoor dining, and elevated views towards the Observation Tower and park.
Vehicular access to the hotel and residences is via a ramp to level 24m, bringing the visitors to a tranquil landscaped area, with breath-taking views of the water. Visitors enter the respective lobbies and are drawn to the front of the building where a signature restaurant fronts the plaza and the urban auditorium. Pedestrians can access level 24m through a set of lifts at the core of the site, or the stepped plaza to the East.
The tower tapers inwards and outwards from its site. From street level it seems to be a continuation of the stepped plaza, as it emerges as a solid mass which gradually dematerialises. A colour transitions from gold at the base to a milky translucent glass at the top reinforces the effect of a dematerialising structure. While the floor plates of the residential and hotel units are organised on a regular modular grid of 7.5m, the balconies create the tapering shape of the building by varying depths of 8m to 2m. This play with the variable balcony widths creates a moiré pattern. As a result, the building’s appearance will alter depending on the angle and height at which it is viewed creating a visual break-down of the solidity of the overall massing.
