The Strata Tower (AKA ‘The Electric Razor”) has opened in the re-emerging Elephant and Castle area of London. Its three built-in wind turbines will generate 8% of the building’s power, assuming all goes well.
But are they just a tokenistic green gimmick? Or will they propel us towards a new urban architecture, one that’s cinematically thrilling and ecologically sound? Until its sibling towers rise and the redevelopment of Elephant and Castle is complete, it will be hard to properly judge Strata. Right now, it stands alone, a sleek silver sentinel, towering over the follies of the recent past.