Tel Aviv greenlights construction of one of Israel’s tallest towers

The Tel Aviv local planning and building committee gave the green light earlier this month for the construction of a 91-story or 350-meter (1,150-foot)-high tower by Azrieli Group that looks head to be the second-tallest structure in the country.

Dubbed the Spiral Tower, the building will be part of the Azrieli Center Complex, which includes the famous circle, square, and triangle towers of the Tel Aviv skyline. The tower’s construction will take approximately four years, according to business daily Calcalist. It will be built where the Beit Yedioth Ahronoth building stood for decades.

Once completed, it will stand some 100 meters taller than Israel’s nearby Azrieli Sarona Tower at 238 meters, currently the tallest building in the country.

The planning of the Spiral Tower was undertaken by US architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) with Israeli firms Moshe Zur Architects and Eli Attia Architects. KPF is famously behind some of the world’s tallest structures, including the 555-meter Lotte World Tower in Seoul, South Korea, and the 435-meter One Vanderbilt tower in Manhattan.

Azrieli Group announced its intention to build the Spiral Tower in December 2018, estimating that it would take approximately 6-7 years to complete with a price tag of roughly NIS 2.5 billion ($800 million).

Danna Azrieli, chairperson of Azrieli Group, said at the time that the architecture of the Spiral Tower was “a reflection of the boldness and creativity that embody the Azrieli Group, which redefines Tel Aviv’s skyline with each new project.”

The Spiral Tower is expected to take up some 150,000 square meters of space, which is identical to the area of the three existing edifices. The tower’s base will add another wing and entry plaza to the Azrieli Mall, making it Israel’s largest shopping center with more than 400 stores.

Above the ground, the tower will include commercial floors at its base, office floors up to half of the tower, above which are residential floors for rent that include 171 housing units, and at the top a hotel with about 250 rooms. On the 90th and 91st floors, there will be an open-air chef restaurant and bar with a 360-degree view of the city.

In April, fintech company Rapyd announced that it leased seven floors in the planned tower.

The site will have six levels of underground parking, as well as an additional commercial floor below ground directly connected to the King Saul station of the Red Line light rail, which is currently under construction.

The Azrieli Spiral Tower, once completed, will become Israel’s second-tallest building. A 400-meter high structure, the Bein Arim Tower, is under construction near the Israel Diamond Exchange, the Bursa, on Menachem Begin Road in Tel Aviv. Its construction is expected to be completed in 2023.