# Does your city have a lighting scheme for its skyline?



## RafflesCity (Sep 11, 2002)

Certain cities market their skylines as part of their image.

Does your city actively promote its skyline at night?


March 25, 2006
*Push for dazzling night skyline with $10m fund *

By Daryl Loo

SINGAPORE - BUILDING owners in the Central Business District and Marina Bay are being encouraged to light up their structures at night in a bid by the Government to make the city skyline dazzle. 










Owners can claim up to $500,000 to cover half the costs of their lighting installations, and a $10 million fund has been set aside to be used over the next five years. 

The aim is to create a stunning visual impact.

'Several buildings are already lit up at night, including UOB Plaza and Capital Tower. But they are scattered and don't create the impact we would like to see,' said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan yesterday.

It's not just the skyline that will get a new shimmer. The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) will replace the yellow street lamps with bright white lights along the main roads. Trees, waterside areas and building facades along the sidewalks will also be illuminated to complete the look. 

Mr Mah gave details of the new lighting plan yesterday, in a follow-up to his earlier announcement during the Budget debate.

For new buildings and those undergoing major redevelopment, owners will be offered up to 2 per cent additional floor space if they have night lighting, he said.

Speaking to city planners, architects and developers at the URA corporate plan seminar, he said the plan would help 'create a beautifully lit Singapore skyline at night'.

There are an estimated 50 office buildings of 20 storeys and upwards in the two areas.

*The plan will eventually cover Orchard Road, Bugis, and the Singapore River area.*

Developers were cheered by the news. A spokesman for developer CapitaLand noted how extensive lights on the facade of its landmark Capital Tower 'not only make the building more attractive, but also help to pull in blue chip tenants by enhancing its image'. Its lights are turned on from 7pm to midnight daily, and change to blue, red, green and purple.

City Developments group general manager Chia Ngiang Hong added: 'This is a good idea. Lighting boosts the reputation of the developer. If a beautiful building is dark at night, nobody will notice it.'

City Developments' most prominent building in the CBD is the 66-storey Republic Plaza. But it is only partially lit now, said Mr Chia, as the building was designed over a decade ago.

The added energy costs were a concern for some, but the URA estimates that such lighting will add less than 1 per cent to a building's energy bill.

Lighting consultant Guilhot Jean-Marc, of French-based building lights specialist Citelum, also noted how new technologies like energy-saving bulbs and reflectors have drastically reduced electricity costs.

Lighting up the exterior of a 30-storey block can cost upwards of $100,000, depending on the lighting system. Moving lights and laser shows can raise the bill to more than $1 million.

[email protected] 
Copyright © 2005 Singapore Press Holdings. All rights reserved.


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## nygirl (Jul 14, 2003)

Thats wonder raffles, you live in an amazingly beautiful city. 
I know Hong Kong has an absolutely amazing scheme called the symphony of lights, and that generally it does a fantastic job of individually lighting its buildings.
I know that Tokyo's Night is filled with countless red flashing lights.
Los Angeles has a perfect switchboard effect.

For New York, 

I don't think there is an all around plan for NYC's night lighting schemes. Individual buildings have their own unique lights. The Empire State has certain effects for certain events. Metropolitan life has different wonderful color schemes all year round.
The chrysler has pretty much been the same since the beggining. 
Many are floodlit. American International is the current beacon at night for Downtown. 
Times Square is a mass of color chaos. 
Hundreds of our buildings light up their tops crowns, and spires nothing is exactly coordinated for the skyline. It works for me.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

*Hong Kong Symphony of Lights *

"A Symphony of Lights" has been awarded the *world's "Largest Permanent Light and Sound Show"* by Guinness World Records. This nightly spectacle combines interactive lights of 33 key buildings on both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon with musical effects to showcase the vibrancy and glamorous night vista of Victoria Harbour.

The Show comprises five major themes, taking spectators on a unique journey celebrating the energy, spirit and diversity of Hong Kong:

The first scene "Awakening" begins with flashes of laser lights that give life to a nucleus of light-energy which gradually illuminates participating buildings using an array of dancing lights and rainbow colour. This scene symbolizes the genesis and powerful growth of Hong Kong.

The second scene "Energy" is represented by the display of rising colour patterns and the sweeping of the lasers and searchlights energetically across the night sky, signifying the vibrant energy of Hong Kong.

In the third scene "Heritage", traditional lucky red and gold colours are displayed across buildings on both sides of the Harbour, complemented by the introduction of music using Chinese musical instruments, symbolizing Hong Kong's colourful heritage and rich cultural traditions.

The fourth scene "Partnership" features a display of laser beams and sweeping searchlights scanning across the Harbour, representing an illuminated connection with the opposite side. Beams reach out to symbolically connect the two sides of the Harbour into one greater and unified partnership.

The finale "Celebration" brings out a powerful rhythmic display of swirling, kaleidoscopic patterns of lights and beams dancing lively across the Harbour. The exciting final scene signifies the celebration of the close partnership between the two sides of the Harbour and represents an even brighter future for Asia's world city - Hong Kong. 




































































































*Individual Building Illuminations*


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## mhays (Sep 12, 2002)

It's great for Hong Kong. 

But in Seattle we'd see that as a big waste of electricity. Plus, I like the sea of partially-lit interior offices.


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## spyguy (Apr 16, 2005)

Nothing as elaborate or coordinated as HK in Chicago. Many individual towers are lit normally each night, and some more also have lighting on special holidays. I remember that the city was supposed to provide some lighting experts (from Europe) for buildings to use but don't know what happened with that. There's also the issue of migrating birds...


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## Skybean (Jun 16, 2004)

YES. The lighting scheme is this:


Turn off the lights and save the birds.


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## TalB (Jun 8, 2005)

Honestly, I find this unneccesary.


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## Skybean (Jun 16, 2004)

^^ Unnecessary towards BOREDOM.



Skybean said:


> YES. The lighting scheme is this:
> 
> 
> Turn off the lights and save the birds.


The "SAVE THE BIRDS" scheme


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## Manila-X (Jul 28, 2005)

HK does have The Symphony Of Lights. Singapore is gonna be next


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

Do neon lights attract bugs and birds in the same way as a flourescent-lit office building?


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## BuffCity (Jul 29, 2004)

I wish we did, the Niagara Mohawk tower has a sceme, City Hall lights up well and added a red light to the mix...a few should be lit like the Rand Building and the Statler Hotel, besides it doesnt look bad, but It's not HK either.


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## soup or man (Nov 17, 2004)

LA (downtown anyway) doesn't have neon all over the place. It has a pretty classy and subtle nighttime lighting scheme.


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## CrazyCanuck (Oct 9, 2004)

Yeah, the scheme is called " Lights Out!" LOL


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## _00_deathscar (Mar 16, 2005)

TalB said:


> Honestly, I find this unneccesary.


If you're talking about the Symphony of Lights - it's purely a tourist attraction - nothing more, nothing less.

HK hardly needs it to 'spice up the harbour' - but it did need something new after HarbourFest flopped and it was in a major depression right after SARS.

SoL (Symphony of Lights) helped pull it out too...


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## SE9 (Apr 26, 2005)

At Canary Wharf in London, most of the towers have a simply lit crown or tip. White, blue and green are the standard colours.


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## Cloudship (Jun 8, 2005)

How does the Dark Skies movement respond to this? I love the lookl of lights and such, but it IS an awful lot of light pumped into the sky, and it really is pretty obtrusive even to those outside the city.


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## _00_deathscar (Mar 16, 2005)

I don't think anyone cares as long as the $$$ is regularly pumped in by tourists and the economy is booming.

F*ck the dark skies movement - if I wanted to go see stars, I'd go into outer space.


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## BostonSkyGuy (Feb 24, 2006)

I prefer the L.A. and London style of adding style but not over doing it. I'm not a fan of some of the light schemes in other cities.

For example Dallas, their light scheme looks like a Hill Billy christmas lights display. I'm not a fan of HK either, it's just too much. 

Singapore looks good though, I guess I prefer if the city is going to "jazz it up" that they use white and blues as opposed to some of those crazy neon colors, it's just doesn't look right.

But some cities who don't have "light schemes" look great, like NY. There's individual buildings who do different things with their lights that make it unique. I know in Boston the Old Hancock building spire light changes every three hours based on the weather prediction for the next three hours and also let's you know if the Sox game is cancelled. Simple things like that are cool to me, I don't find it necessary to go crazy but some like it, to each their own.


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## Hecago (Dec 1, 2005)

No, unfortunately, I heard it has something to tdo with birds or something.


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## Skybean (Jun 16, 2004)

SE9 said:


> At Canary Wharf in London, most of the towers have a simply lit crown or tip. White, blue and green are the standard colours.


Looks like anti-aircraft warning beacons.


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