Closed circuit for skyscrapers

The high-rise construction in St Petersburg faces the problem of economic feasibility given that the land in the city center is expensive and the construction is frowned on whilst on the outskirts it hardly makes sense economically.

Two factors impede the city’s growth upward, the altitude regulations and difficulties with the transport infrastructure.
As a rule, the high-rise buildings appear where land is expensive and each square metre of it must be used with maximum efficiency. However, this logic does not work St Petersburg because high-rise construction opportunities on a costly territory are usually very limited whilst in places where high-rise construction is allowed it is often economically unfeasible.
Albert Kharchenko, EastReal Director-General, points out: “Overall, the high-rise construction boosts the project cost. If a building is above 75 meters, i.e. on average 25 storeys, its production cost may grow by 50% because the cost of high-rise work, dedicated equipment and building materials is much higher than standard rates”.
Andrey Alekseyev, head of the MFK YE’S Pioneer state-funded company engaged in St Petersburg construction business, also points out, as impediments of the high-rise construction in the city, such facts as the difficulty of finding a skilled contractor able to build, adequately and with warrants, the relevant structure. This is so because of virtually lack of experience of erecting such structures in Petersburg. “In addition, the construction of high-rise buildings needs stronger building elements, which can be obtained in two ways. These are the reinforcement of standard structures - which reduces the building’s useful floor area – or the employment of stronger materials – which ultimately also impacts the final cost,” specifies Mr. Alekseyev.
He also notes the weather conditions and excessive humidity in St Petersburg with the normal cloud altitude around 120 m, due to which fact the upper storeys of a 150 m high building will remain above the clouds for much of the year.   
Also, he says, it should be noted that due to the weather conditions and enhanced humidity in St Petersburg, the cloud height is around 120 m. Therefore, it is highly probable that a 150 meter high building’s upper floors will remain clouded for much of the year.
Yelena Valuyeva, the MirLand Development Corporation Marketing Director, adds: “In addition to the economic and legal restrictions on high-rise construction, the latter is also influenced by the specifics of the ground in Petersburg, conventionally called “weak”. Therefore the choice of construction sites is limited and the standard building techniques are subject to different modifications.”
Vladimir Podkolzin, head of the TsPO FGUP (Federal Unitary Enterprise for Special Construction Projects) says that modern technologies enable work on all types of soils.  
“The relatively “low” high-rise buildings 30 to 40 storeys high are normally built using carcass or framed carcass systems. The trunk layouts are preferred for 40 to 60 storey objects. They feature increased stability and ability to level out the buildings’ oscillations. The 60 to 100 storey buildings usually feature combined layouts. Such constructions assure greater flexibility due to the even distribution of horizontal loads,” said Mr. Podkolzin.   
In his opinion, one should also remember the extra requirements for high-rise building safety. To assure the safety the engineering equipment’s basic systems must be invariably supplied with standbys and provided with an extra independent power source.

An opinion:

Dmitry Zolin, Managing Director of the Senator Business center network:

“The Moscow scenarios do not always apply to St Petersburg. Our city is rather conservative, which manifests itself, among other things, in the choice of office accommodations. Based on my experience, I can say that major companies prefer smaller business centers where they make themselves at home and stay at ease. Geographically, this is the Petrograd side, Central district, and the Vasilyevsky Island.”