Ten questions concerning wind effects on supertall residential buildings

Historically the taller buildings in our cities have been commercial or office buildings. In part, the massaging of national, corporate, or individual ego may have been a reason behind this trend for most of the twentieth century but, of course, the financial case was actually compelling too, as the market for CBD living was traditionally limited. However, more recently the trend to higher population densities close to the centre of many cities has resulted in new tall buildings having a dominant residential nature; mixed use, hotel/apartment, or pure apartment. From a wind-engineering perspective this move to homes in the sky introduces some new opportunities and sources of design angst, neither of which should be ignored. What follows is a discussion of issues noted over the last thirty years that may allow modern designers to learn from previous choices.