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September 1, 2014

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‘Trousers’ tower taking its time ...

THE developer of a 4.5 billion yuan (US$733 million) building in Suzhou that has been mocked for looking like a pair of trousers admitted yesterday that the project had suffered several delays, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Gate of the Orient in Suzhou’s central business district is set to be the largest building in the city at a height of 278 meters.

After breaking ground in 2004, construction didn’t begin until 2008. It had been scheduled to be complete in 2012.

An unnamed purchaser of properties in the building in 2013 told Xinhua that the delivery date had been postponed several times.

The latest delay was in July and a new date for entry was given as the beginning of next year. The buyer said compensation had been paid for the delay as per contract.

Zheng Donghui, CEO of Suzhou Chinaing Real Estate Co Ltd, the developer of the building, told Xinhua there were two main reasons for the delay.

Construction was very difficult due to the building’s unique design and, for safety reasons, a number of expert evaluations had been sought, which had cost a lot of time.

Another reason was that construction had been affected by other projects in the business district.

Workers at the site told Xinhua construction hadn’t stopped and they were about to install air conditioners and water pumps.

The developer said construction was in its closing stages and internal decoration was well underway.

So far, sales of space in the building are estimated to have exceeded a billion yuan (US$733 million) and the developer said it had signed long-term agreements with property management companies Savills and CBRE.

The Gate of the Orient is not the only building in China that has amused the public by its appearance.

In 2008, the new office building of China Central Television in Beijing was likened to a pair of men’s shorts.

Shanghai’s World Financial Center is often referred to as “the can opener.”

A seven-star Sheraton hotel in Huzhou in east China’s Zhejiang Province was said to look like a toilet lid.

And the new People’s Daily headquarters made headlines when photographs appeared of a phallic-like object.




 

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