London's Changing Skyline: Skyscrapers Alter Historic City's Look

Over the past few decades, the London skyline has slowly been changing. And although its skyscrapers aren't on a par with New York's, they have slowly been affecting the look of the London landscape. Remembering that this is an ancient city and that many of its buildings are of historical significance, the face of London's skyline has changed relatively little compared to other big cities. There have been a few notable structures in more recent years that have changed how London looks, both from the ground and from the air.

We have the 590 foot '30 St Mary Axe' affectionately nicknamed the gherkin due to its gherkinish?! shape. Its unique look and positioning has given it an almost quaint charm. A funny little skyscraper addition to the capital and one that engenders more affection than objection. Then we have the London Eye, which was raised primarily as part of the 2000 celebrations. It was never stated how long this enormous 442 foot mega customized Ferris wheel was estimated to stay up. Initially it was thought to be only a temporary addition to the London Skyline, which sounds much like how the 'Eiffel Tower' in Paris, France was viewed when it was initially built to celebrate the World Fair in 1889. However 7+ years later and a huge tourist attraction unto itself the wheels future now seems assured. By the way it is no longer holds the title as tallest Ferris wheel in the world, that title having made its way to a 525 feet wheel in Nanchang, China. As a landmark it works wonderfully well residing right on the bank of the Thames but far away enough from other major landmarks that it isn't vying for attention.

The latest addition to the London Skyline Arsenal will be a building called the London Bridge Tower, otherwise known as the 'Shard', a 72 floor glass splinter shaped building which will when built be the tallest building in Britain, topping out at just over 1,016 feet a good 200+ foot taller than the current tallest building 'One Canada Square' (771 feet) which resides in Canary Wharf. The shard will also have the highest public viewing gallery in Europe at 800 feet which will obviously bring in many tourists dollars.

As with any ancient historic capital with many historically significant and identifiable landmarks London has to be more careful than most modern cities like 'New York' or 'Chicago' in how it places any new buildings or structures of any significant size. The classic image of London with St. Pauls Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Houses of Parliament and the Thames winding gently through the city center needs to be preserved and any major new development has to be closely vetted before permission is given. The approval for the 'Shard' project is the biggest go ahead for any development I can think of since the squished mushroom that is the 'Millennium Dome' was built in the Dockland area, a white elephant if ever there was one.

Mixing new and old is a difficult thing. The Canary Wharf area which was basically a deserted East End area called the Isle of Dogs has become a mini-city within a city. Since there were no existing landmarks to compete it was allowed to develop on it's own terms and makes for an interesting visit for any adventurous tourist looking to see what else London has to offer other than the requisite 'Tower of London', 'Buckingham Palace' style must-sees. New developments are essential to any Cities progress but it's just as important to place them correctly & in London's case to ensure that the feel and look of one of the most recognizable city vistas in the world is preserved.