Signal Tower plans, which formed a key project in the regeneration of the La Defense district of the French capital, have been scrapped. The project failed to attract investors and the main investor of the project, the Spanish firm Medea group, withdrew from the tower scheme.
The 300m-high skyscraper was the subject of an international competition that attracted entries from renowned architects. Nouvel was chosen from among five finalists, which included Norman Foster and Daniel Libeskind.
The GBP524 million ($780.5 million), 140,000 square meters high-rise tower comprises four segments designed to resemble stacked cubes. The tower accommodates retail, office, hotel, and residential spaces. The varied uses have been differentiated through large glazed atria along its façade.
The new president of the Board of Directors of the public planning of Defense, Joëlle Ceccaldi-Raynaud, criticized the structure as an ‘unaesthetic monolith’.
