Abraj Al-Bait-A Blessing or Blasphemy?

Abraj Al-Bayt

 The Abraj Al-Bait Towers, also known as the Mecca Royal Hotel Clock Tower, is a building complex in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. These towers are a part of King Abdulaziz Endowment Project that strives to modernize the holy city in catering to the pilgrims. The complex holds several world records, such as the tallest hotel in the world, the tallest clock tower in the world, the world's largest clock face and the building with the world's largest floor area. The complex's hotel tower has become the second tallest building in the world in 2012, surpassed only by Dubai's Burj Khalifa. The building complex is meters away from the world's largest mosque and Islam's most sacred site, the Masjid al Haram. The developer and contractor of the complex is the Saudi Binladin Group, the Kingdom's largest construction company.
It was built at the same place as the former Ajyad Fortress, an old fort of the Ottoman epoch dating from the 18th century and which was destroyed in 2002 by the Saudi government in order to begin the building work, sparking global outcry.

Detail Structures

The tallest tower in the complex stands as the tallest building in Saudi Arabia, and the tallest hotel in the world, with a height of 601 metres (1,972 feet). Currently it is the second tallest building in the world, surpassing Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan. The structure had surpassed Dubai International Airport having the largest floor area of any structure in the world with 1,500,000 m2 (16,150,000 sq ft) of floorspace. It also surpassed the Emirates Park Towers in Dubai as the world's tallest hotel.

The site of the complex is located across the street to the south from an entrance to the Masjid al Haram mosque, which houses the Kaaba. To accommodate worshipers visiting the Kaaba, the Abraj Al-Bait Towers has a large prayer room capable of holding more than 10,000 people. The tallest tower in the complex also contains a five-star hotel to help provide lodging for the millions of pilgrims that travel to Mecca annually to participate in the Hajj.

In addition, the Abraj Al-Bait Towers has a five-story shopping mall (the Abraj Al Bait Mall) and a parking garage capable of holding over a thousand vehicles. Residential towers house permanent residents while two heliports and a conference center are to accommodate business travelers. In total, up to 100,000 people could be housed inside the towers.[citation needed] The project uses clock faces for each side of the hotel tower. The highest residential floor stands at 450 metres (1,480 feet), just below the clocks. The clock faces are 43 × 43 m (141 × 141 ft), the largest in the world. The roof of the clocks is 530 metres (1,740 feet) above the ground, making them the world's most elevated architectural clocks. A 71-metre-tall spire (233 ft) has been added on top of the clock giving it a total height of 601 metres (1,972 feet), which makes it the second tallest building in the world, surpassing Taipei 101 in Taiwan. The tower also includes an Islamic Museum and a Lunar Observation Center which will also be used to sight the moon during the Holy Months.

The building was planned to be 485 meters tall in 2006. In 2009, it was published that the final height will be 601 meters. The complex was built by the Saudi Binladin Group, Saudi Arabia's largest construction company. The clock tower was designed by the German company Premiere Composite Technologies, and the clock by the Swiss engineering firm Straintec.[4] According to the Saudi Ministry of Religious Endowments, the project cost $15 billion

The Mosque next to the building is and will always be the central focal point for Muslims - i can understand why people of other faiths will see the building as the centre peace, however I think the building will bring some benefits like

*Tall buildings will naturally attract wind flow around the building - so it could encourage fresh winds and lower the temperature for pilgrims
*Also provide valuable shade for pilgrims
*A Beacon for anyone travelling to Mecca knowing which direction the Qibla is - by using the building as a reference point
*Aesthetical landmark - bringing the surrounding areas up to modern standards
*Make life easier for pilgrims by not having too far to travel - although i suspect it will be well off pilgrims

I am sure that when other buildings around the Harram area are demolished and bought up[ to modern standards - the city will be state of the art for pilgrims and residents

Mecca looks amazing now – it will look more amazing in the next 10-15 years!
I hope they increase the height to over 610 meters as the building will be in the 2000ft club where only a few buildings currently built and under construction are in that club.

Use your imagination