The fast-progressing Crossrail development at London's Canary Wharf is to bring a new leisure and retail centre, with 100,000sq ft (9,290sq m) of consumer-enticing space, a rooftop park and a community facility on offer. The project is nearing completion with the final piece of a timber lattice roof having been lowered into place, which is to partially cover the complex’s green space roof-top offering. Once complete, the development will be

Wuhan, the capital city of central China, could be the home of the world’s tallest pair of buildings by 2018, as part of an ambitious mixed-use scheme. Chetwoods Architects, a UK based firm, have submitted proposals for the world’s tallest towers and are awaiting final approval from Wuhan’s mayor. The new Phoenix Towers, standing at 3,280ft (1 km) tall, would take up seven hectares of a yet-to-be developed 47 hectare

Park Hyatt’s upcoming flagship hotel in New York will feature an artisanal spa called Nalai, which means ‘serenity’ in the language of the Lenape people – the original tribe of Manhattan. Scheduled to open in Q3 of this year, the 13,000sq ft (1,208sq m) spa will be located on the 210-guestroom hotel’s 25th floor, providing sweeping views of the New York City skyline and partial views of Central Park. A

Grimshaw Architects has been selected to design new recreational sports facilities in Doha, following an international competition backed by the Qatar Olympic Committee. Despite recent allegations of corruption linked to the Qatar 2022 World Cup, Grimshaw's design aims to move away from this and focus on the health and wellness needs in Doha, by providing a haven for Qataris whose current sports participation is somewhat limited. Grimshaw’s mission was twofold

Newly promoted League One side Fleetwood Town FC has been granted planning permission to start work on a new £6m training complex. Designed by architects Croft Goode, the facility will become home to Fleetwood Town’s first team, Thornton-Cleveleys FC and members of the local community. The site, based on Poolfoot Farm in Thornton, Lancashire will house a full-size 3G pitch, as well as a number of grass pitches, associated changing

A huge 200,000sq ft (18,580sq m) aquarium will open in late 2015 as part of a US$175m (€128m, £103m) entertainment complex in Arizona, US, with work to start in August later this year. A part of the Odysea in the Desert leisure complex, OdySea Aquarium will cover 16 acres of land and will sit over two floors, accommodating up to 15,000 visitors daily and creating around 250 permanent jobs. The

The new Rosewood Guangzhou hotel, located on the top 16 floors of Guangzhou, China’s tallest building will be home two a two-level Sense spa. Coming in 2017 and located in the heart of Tianhe District’s central business area, near the Zaha Hadid -designed Guangzhou Opera House, the 251-bedroom hotel is in a 530m (1,738ft) tall building – amongst the 10 tallest in the world. It will have the fastest elevators

Danish architectural practice, Bjarke Ingles Group (BIG) has won a contest to expand the world famous head quarters of luxury watch maker Audemars Piguet in Vallée de Joux, Switzerland, to include a new design museum. The 2,373 sq m (7,785 sq ft) pavillion will be built to match the story-telling purpose of the structure, which aims to open as a museum dedicated to Audemars Piguet’s history. Seeing off fierce competition

Controversial plans to build a £50m ($85m, €63m) leisure and retail development in Northampton have been approved by Secretary of State Eric Pickles. The developer of the Rushden Lakes project, LXB Properties, has been waiting for months for a decision on the development, which is to be built at the Skew Bridge brown field site. Plans for the project, consulted on by HPW Architects, include the creation of a hotel,

China’s latest piece of ‘duplitecture’ – architectural replicas of tourist areas and attractions around the world – will be a CN¥10.8bn (US$1.7bn, €1.3bn, £1bn) recreation of Queenstown in New Zealand, alongside imitations of Davos in Switzerland and a Scottish-style town. The planned ski resort will be built with a “Queenstown-type feel” and will sit near another “mini-Queenstown” which will feature a scenic man-made blue lake, ski fields, a forest train,

Plans for a £500m regeneration project in Birmingham – introducing new leisure facilities, a hotel offering, retail space and offices – have moved a step further ahead after a constructor was chosen to begin enabling work on the first phase of the project this autumn. Wolverhampton-based firm Carillion has been elected to work on the 17-acre Paradise Circus mixed-use scheme, which is being developed by Paradise Circus General Partner: a

Plans for the Philadelphia 76ers to create a new practice facility and office building along the waterfront of Camden, New Jersey, have taken a step forward, after the US state's Economic Development Authority (EDA) approved US$82m (€60.5m, £48.8m) in tax breaks for the team. The agreement will see instalments of US$8.2m (€6m, £4.8m) paid out annually over a 10-year period to cover state corporate business taxes, on the premise that

The construction of the new Minnesota Vikings stadium has been given a further boost after the venue was awarded the 2018 NFL Super Bowl. Expected to be complete by 2016, the Vikings Stadium has been designed by architects HKS, along with a Vikings Stadium Consortium made up of Studio Hive, Studio Five & Lawal Scott Erickson Architects. The 65,000-capacity stadium, thought to be running up a cost of around US$1bn

London’s mini-Holland concept, pioneered by the London Cycling Campaign (LCC), has shifted up a gear since its inception. Now, with further formulated plans, the three bid winning boroughs have had architectural figureheads appointed to each project. Supported by Transport for London (TFL), London mayor Boris Johnson and several prominent architects, three outer London boroughs are being given £30m (US$50m, €37m) each to revolutionise their cycling habits. Each of the boroughs

Dubai city officials and architect Fernando Donis are at loggerheads following the unveiling of plans for a unique new attraction in Dubai. Donis, a Mexican architect, won the Dubai Municipality competition to design a new public monument in 2009 and now, five years later, new images have been released of the redesigned structure. The “Dubai Frame” will be 150m (492ft) tall and 100m (328ft) wide, with a walkway between the

A safari park set to replace Dubai Zoo is scheduled for a 2015 opening, according to park officials. Plans to replace Dubai’s current zoo have been on the cards for nearly a decade, with plans going back as far as early 2005, while the project has been scrutinised, reworked and revised for a method of relocating around 1,000 animals from their existing habitats. Dubai Municipality is carrying out the 120

The United States Tennis Association is seeking to further its development of the sport following plans to introduce a US$60m (€44.1m, £35.7m) training complex in Orlando, Florida. The 63-acre project will be based in the Lake Nona area, supplying USTA and its members with the use of over 100 courts. The centre will house the USTA's Community Tennis and Player Development divisions, which are primarily based in New York. The

Plans for a US$477m (€350.5m, £284.5m) downtown arena for the Sacramento Kings basketball team are likely to soon become a reality, following the City Council’s recent decision to approve development plans. The new venue has been designed by architects AECOM and will seat in the region of 18,500 people when completed. Once work gets underway later this year at the Downtown Plaza complex, it is believed that Turner Construction will

Yorkshire County Cricket Club (YCCC) has unveiled plans for a 20-year, £50m (US$83m, €61m) expansion of Headingley, in order to safeguard the ground’s status as an international venue. The project, drawn up between the club, Leeds City Council, Leeds Rugby and DLA Architecture, will see the ground’s capacity increased from 17,090 to 20,362 and consist of six phases. Once complete, the stadium will feature a new progressive pavilion, as well

Developer Almacantar, alongside Rafael Viñoly Architects, has gained planning permission for a £450m (US$755m, €554m) mixed use development scheme to be built in London’s Marble Arch. Westminster City Council has approved a bid to demolish the 1967 skyscraper currently standing on the site, with plans to replace it with two new towers, designed by Rafael Viñoly Architects, overlooking Hyde Park. The first tower – 17 storeys in height – will

The realisation of a new stadium for Greek football club AEK Athens FC is looking more likely, following positive discussions between its board and parliamentary opposition group Syriza The second largest party in the Greek parliament had originally been opposed to the idea of the Thanassis Kyratsous-designed stadium, but it now appears the group will vote in favour of Article 81, which concerns the building of the new stadium. The

Construction work is progressing on architects Herzog & de Meuro’s new football stadium in Bordeaux, France, with the venue being completed in time for use in the Euro 2016 championships. Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux will provide seating for up to 42,000 spectators, with an expected competition date due in 2015 to provide adequate preparation time for the next European football tournament beginning a year later. The construction of the project

The San Francisco 49ers American football side has released a raft of new details ahead of the scheduled opening of the team’s new US$1.2bn (€881m, £715m) Levi’s Stadium, including a new museum dedicated to the team. As the project nears completion, the team has revealed details of a 20,000sq ft (1,858sq m) 49ers Museum, which will be open daily and will give fans the chance to use a pass-and-kick simulator,

The world’s second richest man, Carlos Slim, is poised to open a four-storey underground aquarium in Mexico City at a cost of approximately MX$250m (US$20m, €14.6m, £11.9m). The 37,700sq ft (3,500sq m) Inbursa Aquarium is home to 5,000 marine animals (eventually to increase to 10,000) and features 230 different species (to increase to 307) of sea creatures, split across twelve different ecological zones through its 48 showrooms and five big

The Atlanta Braves baseball team has moved a step closer to sealing a move to their future home after Cobb County Commissioners gave unanimous approval for American Builders 2017 to operate as construction manager for the new ballpark, set to open in February 2017. American Builders 2017 – a joint venture between Brasfield & Gorie, Mortenson Construction, Barton Malow Company and New South Construction – will oversee the build on

The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has awarded a £4.42m (US$7.4m, €5.4m) grant to restore Pitzhanger Manor, West London, to turn it into a tourist attraction. The former home of architect Sir John Soane, will undergo a major redevelopment in a bid to turn the building into a “world class attraction”. The project, led by Ealing Council, will include a full restoration of the manor, upgrading the 1939 art gallery extension

Plans for a €177m (US$240.6m, £143.5m) 17,000-seat addition to Dutch football side Feyenoord’s new ground have been rejected in favour of a brand new 70,000-all seater stadium costing €200m (US$271m, £162m). The newest set of plans – proposed by a consortium of BAM, Eneco Energie and Siemens – would see a brand new 70,000-all seater stadium built at a cost of €200m (US$271m, £162m). Red Kuip – a fan backed