Honorable Mention
2011 Skyscraper Competition

Mengni Zhang
United States

In December 2010, the Ukrainian government lifted the restriction on tourism in the zone around the Chernobyl power plant. Conceptually, this proposal deals with the reconstruction of a post apocalyptic environment. Since the accident in 1986 the site has been abandoned long enough for nature to take over, the absence of humans provides an opportunity for creating a utopian vision for a city. The proposed structure would engage the existing site and architecture as a new layer of landscape, a network of self-evolving skyscrapers that will address scientific, cultural, and historical concerns.

Due to the unpredictable distribution of fallout materials and possible radiation, the primary structure will be manufactured with light-weight fiber composite materials and fixed and transported onto the site by air. Secondary structures, such as highways and other programs, can be built above ground like cantilevered bridges.

The proposed skyscraper network is meant to help improve the existing conditions of the site by slowly decontaminating the soil, providing a self sustained community for travelers, scientists, and current inhabitants. Years later, when the skyscraper network has grown, more people can relocate to the site, creating a new typology of urban phenomena.