Russia Tower ditched

The Russia Tower, part of the Moscow City complex in Moscow, Russia, which was originally scheduled for a 2011 completion has been scrapped and the site will be used for car parking.

Russian Land announced in December that it was freezing its projects because it couldn't attract the required financing, including an estimated US$ 2 billion required for the Russia Tower.

According to local press reports, Mirax made an offer for the Russia Tower project, although this also fell through and now developers are set to use the 2.4 ha site to construct a 3000 space car park.

The construction of a multi-storey car park is a far cry from the ambitious plans that would have seen the Foster + Partners designed Russia Tower as one of the great high rise constructions of the modern era. The 610 m tall naturally ventilated tower was meant to represent the economic and social vitality of Moscow. The car park will instead serve existing buildings in the Moscow City complex.