Updating a story MHProNews published June 19, 2012 regarding the Broad Group’s plan to build the tallest skyscraper in the world using modular construction, the July 20, 2013 groundbreaking in China’s Hunan Province was a festive affair but short-lived: Local government officials suspended the project allegedly because the Broad Group did not have a building permit. The 2,749 foot tall building, with 220 floors, termed Sky City, will withstand a 9.0 earthquake, according to the builders, who did assemble a 30-story modular hotel in 15 days working round the clock. Bloomberg reports it may be that local officials will be overruled by the Chinese Communist Party, which has an eye on projecting a national vitality to its citizens and the outside world. However, the last thing China wants, especially in light of current real estate conditions in the country due to an economic slowdown, is another empty building. Original plans said the extent of sustainability in the construction process would result in energy use one-fifth of a comparable building, and that the structure would be completed by Jan. 2013. The government does see modular construction as the future of urban residential development, and the monster building, said to accommodate 100,000, may yet see the light of day.

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