Standing some 61 stories high and boasting close to a million square feet of high-quality Shanghai office space, Wheelock Square has become an unmissable landmark in a city not lacking in eye-catching skyscrapers.
A number of retail outlets and restaurants have been established towards the base of the new development but the main focus is office space, with 50 floors of the building committed to commercial use of that kind.
Architects from the New York-based firm Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) were behind the design of the new grade A Shanghai offices and they’ve been keen to emphasise the environmental and sustainability benefits of their efforts.
“Wheelock Square is innovative, elegant, and sustainable by design. It is the perfect representation of quality design in today’s modern working environment,” KPF’s leading architect on the Shanghai office space project Robert Whitlock told the People’s Daily in China.
Despite being in central Shanghai, Wheelock Square is also close to an area of open space and grassland in the shape of Jing’an Park, which has a children’s play area and an ancient temple on its grounds.
“The decision to build a single-use office building in lieu of a denser mixed-use development allows for a much more inviting landscaped pedestrian environment,” Mr Witlock went on to explain.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong office space news, Knight Frank recently reported that many businesses are having to battle it out for reasonably priced floor space across the Asian city, particularly in the primary financial centres.
Editor’s notes: Shanghai Wheelock Square is located in the city’s Puxi district and, as of May 2023, is Shanghai’s sixth tallest building.
The Puxi district was listed as the 16th most expensive location to rent office space in 2022 with premium rents reaching the equivalent of US$106 per square foot per year.
Shanghai’s Pudong district was more expensive though and was listed as the 8th most expensive place to rent office space in the world commanding $128 per square foot per year.