How will CityWave change Milan’s skyline? When urban architecture gets a little too intrusive

In the CityLife district of Milan, works are expected to be completed by the end of the year for the construction of CityWave, a large wave-shaped building designed by the renowned Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, founder of the celebrated BIG Studio in Copenhagen. «This is contemporary architecture that maintains classical proportions, [...] avoiding being invasive», Ingels said in reference to the building's form, composed of two blocks joined by a large roof, which as the name suggests will recall the silhouette of a wave.

CityLife is a fairly recent area of Milan: it is located in the north-western part of the city and was built on the site of the former trade fair complex, which was relocated to the outskirts of the Lombard capital. The central square of CityLife, Tre Torri, is home to the Hadid Tower (headquarters of Generali), the Isozaki Tower (designed by Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, headquarters of Allianz) and the Libeskind Tower (by American architect Daniel Libeskind, headquarters of PwC). In addition to the square, the area includes a park and a shopping centre.

Contemporary architecture and urban transformation

CityWave will serve as a new gateway to the CityLife district via Via Domodossola, and will house among other things additional shops and retail outlets, as well as new offices – in this regard Ingels compared the project to «a contemporary reinterpretation of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele», and according to the Danish architect it will in future «be cited as an example of excellence throughout Europe». The project is part of an urban transformation that in recent years has considerably reshaped the cityscape of Milan. In the CityLife district in particular, the contrast between the new contemporary buildings and the surrounding residential fabric was already quite evident, and it is not inconceivable that CityWave – partly due to its distinctive form – could further accentuate this difference.

Operations of this kind certainly represent examples of urban regeneration and architectural innovation, but in many cities they also generate debate among residents about the impact that large-scale new construction can have on the urban landscape. In many major cities, in Italy and abroad, residents tend to favour depaving initiatives over the construction of large new buildings – a term referring to the removal of asphalt from urban spaces and its replacement with green areas. The primary aim of these interventions – Milan is one of the most proactive cities in Italy in this respect – is to reduce "heat islands", that is, areas of the city where temperatures are significantly higher than in the surrounding rural or peripheral zones.

The debate over Manhattan's new skyline

In New York as well, the construction of the new residential skyscraper 262 Fifth Avenue has recently sparked considerable controversy. The building, standing over 250 metres tall, will house just over 20 luxury apartments – with prices reaching around 20 million dollars each. What has irritated many residents of Manhattan, the neighbourhood where the skyscraper is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, is not only the exclusive nature of the project, but above all the way in which the building alters one of the city's most recognisable skylines.

262 Fifth Avenue, designed by Russian firm Meganom and developed by American real estate company Five Points Development Group, is approximately 500 metres from Madison Square Park, one of the city's most frequented green spaces, and from there it blocks the view of the Empire State Building – all of which has fuelled criticism from many residents and urban planners, who see the project as poorly balanced in relation to the urban context of the neighbourhood.

Several people interviewed by the media describe 262 Fifth Avenue as an out-of-scale building compared to the surrounding structures, built largely between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, and therefore much lower. The controversy, however, also recalls how the relationship between new architecture and the urban identity of individual cities is often complex and bound to evolve over time. For instance, New York's Empire State Building itself, today considered one of the city's icons, was criticised at the time of its construction for being considered too large and imposing in relation to the urban fabric.