Jewel Changi Airport – billed as a lifestyle destination and now under construction in the heart of the Singapore gateway – has taken a 2016 International Architecture Award by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture & Design, and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design & Urban Studies.   

The large-scale project – on track to open in early 2019 – is a joint venture between Changi Airport Group and CapitaLand Mall Asia, and is being handled by Jewel Changi Airport Trustee.

Jewel is a mixed-use complex spanning five storeys above ground and five basement storeys. It features a range of lifestyle offerings including comprehensive shopping and dining options to add to the extensive duty free and travel retail stores in the terminals, an indoor garden, play attractions, a hotel and facilities for airport operations.

The International Architecture Awards recognises high standards in design, construction, planning and sustainability, which also maintain a close relationship with the communities that they serve.  Over 130 new buildings, landscape architecture and planning projects from over 40 nations received the accolade this year.

Designed by a consortium comprising Safdie Architects led by renowned architect Moshe Safdie, as well as Benoy and local architects RSP, Jewel is distinct in that its features, which include lush greenery, are integrated beneath a distinctive steel and glass façade.

CENTREPIECE ATTRACTIONS

There are two main centrepiece attractions: the Forest Valley, a five-storey garden filled with thousands of trees, plants, ferns and shrubs, and the 40-metre high Rain Vortex, believed to be the world’s tallest indoor waterfall.

“It has always been our aspiration for Jewel to be a world-class development that will not only strengthen Changi Airport’s air hub status, but also enhance Singapore’s tourism appeal,” says Ms Hung Jean, CEO of Jewel Changi Airport Devt.

“Jewel will feature specially-designed spaces for the wider community to enjoy – where international visitors, local residents and airport staff can come together to interact and engage.”