Lakhta Center

Facilities

Lakhta Center will contain offices, a Co-working centre, a sports centre, a children's science centre and a 4-star hotel. The hotel will be located in the south part of the complex next to the main tower and will be run by Crowne Plaza Hotels.Along with 200 rooms it will include a number of conference halls. The conference halls' interiors will be selected from the projects of young architects participating in a "Archichance" contest. The building will also house a planetarium, a medical centre and an open amphitheater. Lakhta Center's project include 1500 square meters of indoor exhibition space. Along with this, some part of the open area will be left for the demonstrations of objects of art, installations and sculpture. On the top there will be a free public observation deck.

Construction

In June 2015 Lakhta Center fulfilled the requirements of pre-certification under LEED for Core & Shell Development level Gold.

The design of the main tower of Lakhta Center project inherited the design of the main tower of the project Okhta Center, which was succeeded by the project Lakhta Center upon the decision of Gazprom and the city of Saint Petersburg to relocate the project of Gazprom's new headquarters in December 2010. The design development of Lakhta Center is being undertaken by Russian architectural and engineering companies Gorpoekt and ViPS. The interior design of the most objects of the Lakhta Center will be made by international Exclusiva Design Srl Bureau in futuristic style.

In 2008, Arabtec, the construction company involved in the construction of the world’s tallest building in Dubai, won a contract to build this complex.

Approximately 3000 people will be employed in the construction, mostly from professions relating to design and construction. After construction a few thousand workers of different occupations are expected to be employed in the complex.

Geodesic, ecologic and soil investigations and design documentation for the project are prepared by Gorproekt CJSC (Russia), NIIOSP (Russia),Petrochim-technologiya LLC (Russia) and Trest GRII JSC (Russia). In planning and executing works at the underground cycle, piling and producing construction materials such companies as Arabtec (UAE), Bauer Group (Germany), Geostroy CJSC (Russia), Inforsproekt CJSC (Russia) and Renaissance Construction (Turkey) take part. Verification calculations, working documentation development, optimisation of processes and technical supervision are performed by Arup Group Limited (Great Britain), Samsung C&T (Korea) and Lend Lease Project Management & Construction (Great Britain). Project management is being done by AECOM (USA). Exclusiva Design (Italy) is key contractor for the interior design of public spaces. German company Josef Gartner is in charge for the glazing of the skyscraper.

Features of Design

The twisting tower proposed by RMJM is inspired by a Swedish fortress named Landskrona, which occupied the original Okhta site in the early 14th century, and another fortress Nyenschantz on the site until the 18th century in the form of a five-sided star to maximize views for defensive purposes. The inspiration for the design also comes from energy in water, with the building form deriving its shape from the changing nature of water and ever changing light. It gives a new interpretation to the historical fortresses with modern aesthetics and technology - transparency and democracy, internal and external interactions. It also features a unique environmental strategy, which acts as a low energy double-layered skin of the tower allowing maximum daylight and minimum heat loss in the extreme climate of the city.

Innovations

In order to provide more effective fire-fighting, a water mist suppression system will be used. When the temperature exceeds 57 °C, sprinklers creating a water mist will start working automatically. Along with the sprinklers, there will be drenchers which could be switched on manually or by the means of remote control in order to create a water curtain in an emergency. Lakhta Center is also set to be the first skyscraper in St. Petersburg where an ice formation control system will be used. Heating of the glass at high floors will prevent ice accumulation and help maintain good visibility. The spire of the Tower will be made from metal gauze to prevent a layer of ice forming in winter. Level of consumption of material and energetic resources is going to be decreased due to conversion of kinetic energy of the Center workers and visitors' steps to electric energy. In periods of birds' migration special illumination will be used to light the tower.

"Green" and Energy-saving Technologies

While designing Lakhta Center several "green" and energy-saving technologies were planned for further application. They are

All in all, while constructing Lakhta Center approximately 100 innovations are to be used. It lets increase the indexes of energy saving by 40% compared to the buildings where standard technologies are in use. Okhta Center project entered to a list of "10 most ecological skyscrapers in the world" made up by the Consumer Energy Report. Experts say that the same status may be assigned to Lakhta Center because it will provide even better power efficiency.

In experts' opinion, period of recoupment of using green and energy-saving technologies in Lakhta Center may be at about 20 years though Lakhta Center's Projection department's specialists think that this figure is a bit overestimated.

Background

On November 15, 2005, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller and Saint Petersburg governor at that time Valentina Matviyenko announced the intention of Sibneft to build the Gazprom City Business center. The plans included a 300-metre-high skyscraper with its headquarters on the right bank of the Neva River 59°56′37.6″N 30°24′27.1″E, across from the Smolny Cathedral, despite the fact that current regulations forbid construction of a building of more than 42 (48 with expert approval) metres high there. The plans were later revised to increase the height of the skyscraper to more than 400 metres.

On December 1, 2006, Gazprom and the city authorities announced, live on television, that British architectural firm Robert Matthew Johnson Marshall Ltd., had been chosen to build the center by a committee consisting of four foreign architects, four representatives of the St. Petersburg City Administration, including Matviyenko herself, and representatives of Gazprom: Alexei Miller, Valery Golubev (Deputy CEO Gazprom, Head of the Department for Construction and Investment of Gazprom, former Head of the Vasileostrovsky Administrative District of St. Petersburg) and Alexander Ryazanov (President of Gazprom Neft, fired on November 17 during the competition). In fact, three of the four architects, namely Norman Foster, Rafael Viñoly and Kisho Kurokawa, retired from the jury before it convened, opposing all of the shortlisted designs because of their height. The construction of the entire Gazprom City was supposed to be completed by 2016.

In March 2007 the project was renamed from Gazprom City to Okhta Center (after the river of Okhta). It was also decided that Gazprom Neft would allocate 51% of funds for the construction project, while city budget would account for only 49%.

In late 2008, St. Petersburg Governor Valentina Matviyenko introduced an amendment into the city budget, delaying investment in the Okhta Center for the first half of 2009. The reason was due to the current financial crisis.

In December 2010, Governor Matviyenko announced that the project plan on the Okhta site was abandoned and will be built in the suburbs. The new planned site was farther from the historic center of St. Petersburg, on the northern shore of the Neva Bay (Gulf of Finland). This site was on the Primorskoye Highway (Приморское Шоссе), in the Lakhta area of the Primorsky District, northwest of Vasilyevsky Island.

Construction of the project at the Lakhta site was supposed to resolve the conflicts that previously existed with the city's laws concerning cultural preservation.

Planning and Construction

10 March 2011 Gazprom bought a site of 140 thousand square metres for the construction of the business center at Lakhtinsky prospect, 2. 18 March 2011 press office of Business and Public-service Center "Okhta" CJSC informed that it received from The Committee of State Control, Usage and Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments in Saint Petersburg the document stating that there were no any historical or cultural restrictions on the territory of the site in Lakhta.

In April, 2011 it was declared that the architectural concept of Lakhta Center was to be created on the basis of the Okhta Center's project. Along with this it became known that Lakhta's soils were appropriate for constructing a building of 500 metres high which let engineers significantly decrease costs of foundation construction.

24 June 2011 public hearing on the Lakhta Center project was held. Tony Kettle, that time International Group Design Director at RMJM presented the conceptual design of Lakhta Center's architecture as well as the data of the research showing how a high storey building may affect Saint Petersburg's panoramas. Public hearing participants were mostly interested in knowing how the construction would influence vehicular traffic, ecology and historical appearance of Saint Petersburg. Center's investors highlighted that project involved many ecologic innovations and it was planned to try-out to construct the first energy efficient district on the territory of the site of Lakhta Center. Despite all Commersant newspaper stated that most of the public was against the construction and there were many rejections and reprimands submitted for the public hearing protocol.

5 October 2011 Gorproekt CJSC (Russia) was announced as the contractor for working out project's design documentation. According to the plan presented by Gorproekt CJSC skyscraper and auxiliary buildings were to be designed in spring, 2012 and stylobate part was to be engineered in summer, 2012.

26 January 2012 it became known that Gazprom was planning to build a new harbour for yachts near Lakhta Center and Krestovsky Island. A new company for managing these sea assets was to be created.

16 March 2012 it was announced that a new metro station was to be constructed near Lakhta Center. This metro station's building was included in the City development plan of Leningrad in 1980 but only with Lakhta Center construction it again entered the agenda. The plan of the metro station's construction was to be finalized by the end of 2012.

18 July 2012 companies chosen for geodesic and ecologic investigations on the site were announced. They were Trest GRII JSC (Russia) for geodesic and Petrochim-Technologiya, LLC (Russia) for ecologic investigations.

17 August 2012 the permit for construction of the first stage of Lakhta Center, which included skyscraper and stylobate was obtained. 31 August 2012 the public hearing on the topic of the layout and surveying of the site of the Lakhta Center was held in the administration of the Primorsky district of Saint Petersburg. Objects planned for placing in the area of construction, scheme of communications and transportation infrastructure were presented to the public. Besides, representatives of the Business and Public-service Center "Okhta" CJSC answered the questions of people.

12 September 2012 "Okhta" CJSC signed a contract with Dubai company Arabtec Holding for carrying out some of the underground cycle works. The company is supposed to construct a diaphragm wall and pile footing for the tower. Contractual time is 28 months, its value is 95 million euro.

In October, 2012 the zero cycle works has been started. Zero cycle consists of the pit excavation, installation of the disk system, piling under the tower, multifunctional building and stylobate and construction of the foundation itself.

22 April 2014 the main potential general contractor for the construction of Lakhta Center was selected. It was Turkish Renaissance Construction company. 22 May 2014 the contract for the construction of the foundation of one of the buildings in Lakhta Center was finally signed. Construction is to be completed in 7 months.

8 September 2014 the final cost of the design and construction of the zero cycle of Lakhta Center was announced. The cost made up 2 billion dollars.

Chronology of Construction

Transportation Development in Lakhta District

Lakhta Center's construction raises a problem of transportation development because of the expected growth of the traffic flow in the region. Two traffic circles are to be built near Lakhta Center. These will be one of the stages of the construction of the future М32А highway. The design of two traffic circles is pending approval of GlavGosExpertisa of Russia and the construction is expected to be started as early as this year. A light rail service from Finland Railway Station and a new tram line from Primorskaya underground station will be built to serve Lakhta Center. Plans are ongoing to build a new underground station with the working title of "Lakhta". Bicycle lanes near Lakhta Center with 90 parking places for bicycles are also planned.

Public Attitude

Alexei Miller claimed that he is "positive that St. Petersburg’s citizens will be proud of these new architectural masterpieces." However, the Director of the Hermitage Museum, Mikhail Piotrovsky, along with numerous civil groups, has spoken out against the plan of Okhta Center. The Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation has also been reported to object to the tower's plan. The Saint Petersburg Union of Architects also voiced opposition to it in July 2006, as did many other citizens. In October 2009, about 3,000 people protested against the tower in St. Petersburg, arguing that it would spoil the city's historic skyline.

As the historical centre of St. Petersburg has become a World Heritage Site since 1990; The World Heritage Committee opposed the construction of the 400-metre tower of Okhta Center as it will affect the cityscape of historic Saint Petersburg. In December 2006 UNESCO World Heritage Centre Director Francesco Bandarin reminded Russia about its obligations to preserve it and expressed concern over the project. In 2007, the World Monuments Fund placed the historic skyline of St. Petersburg on its 2008 Watch List of 100 Most Endangered Sites due to the potential construction of the building, and in 2009 reported that the tower "would damage the image of Russia." During the 36 session of the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO held in Saint Petersburg in 2012 it was stated that a large area of Saint-Petersburg falls within preservation and buffer zones provided for UNESCO World Heritage Sites. That is why it is good for the city that the Okhta Center, which had been planned by Gazprom in front of Smolny Cathedral was moved to Lakhta. Eleonora Mitrofanova, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to UNESCO noticed that the approved construction project for Lakhta Center is located far from the buffer zone and the historical center, so in theory Gazprom is not even obliged to ask UNESCO. However, the government authorities will definitely have consultations for the project with UNESCO. Now we are working to clarify the boundaries of the World Heritage zone and the boundaries of the buffer zone.

The project being moved to Lakhta didn't stop the discussions. On April 11, 2012, ex-governor of St. Petersburg and now Federation Council chairwoman Valentina Matvienko said to journalists that the "Lakhta center could become a new symbol of the city and attract the businessmen from all over the world to St. Petersburg."

During his visit to Russia in 2011 the Chairman of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Professor Sang-Dae Kim was treated to a presentation of a project of Lakhta Center. Professor Kim commented on the “modern shape” of the proposed Lakhta Centre, which according to him had “nothing in common with ordinary boxes”. He also stated that something new ought to be created, which can be shown to new generations in 200–300 years as for them what is created nowadays will be the same history as the architecture of the 18-19th centuries for us today. Professor also noticed that the project reminds him of an oriental concept Yin Yang: on the one hand, the historic part of the city with horizontal buildings and water, and on the other hand, a vertical which will add additional charm to the city. Lakhta Center combines an interesting form and modern technologies, so up to Mr. Kim, with the lapse of time the Center can become a new symbol of Saint Petersburg.

On May 16, 2012, St. Petersburg governor Georgiy Poltavchenko emphasised in his annual report for House of Assembly the necessity of building a new "city" in St. Petersburg. According to Mr Poltavchenko, there are three appropriate districts for that: Lakhta center, Pulkovo and aggradated territories near Waterfront.