The world’s tallest residential skyscraper will be built on the shores of the Atlantic. The Senna Tower in Balneário Camboriú, Brazil, will dethrone the Central Park Tower in New York. According to the architects, the new skyscraper is expected to soar an astonishing 550 metres. Interestingly, the niece of Formula One legend Ayrton Senna is behind the Senna Tower project, and the building is intended as a tribute to the late driver.
Formula 1 mausoleum
The tourist town of Balneário Camboriú in Santa Catrina is teeming with tall, luxurious skyscrapers overlooking the ocean. The city is home to 140,000 people, but this number is still growing. By comparison, a similar number of people live in Rybnik or Zielona Góra. Interestingly, the very tall skyscrapers on the coast have been built in the last 10 years. Balneário Camboriú boasts skyscrapers rising to 294 m, 290 m and 241 m.
Developer FG Empreendimentos had been seeking planning permission for a 550m skyscraper for several years. In September 2024, the first visualisations of the project were announced, but at the time the skyscraper was expected to measure 500 m. Significantly, Lalalli Senna – the niece of Ayrton Senna – is behind the skyscraper project. In his ten-year F1 career, Ayrton Senna climbed to the top of the top driver rankings. Unfortunately, his last race ended in a tragic accident, resulting in Senna’s death. The Brazilian government declared national mourning and crowds of fans attended the state funeral in São Paulo. For this reason, the Senna Tower is to honour the Formula One legend.
Journey to the light
Behind the design of the skyscraper is the story of overcoming obstacles created by Lalalli Senna. The curved part of the base is the beginning of the ‘journey’ towards the ideal. It is for this reason that an illuminated observatory is to be located at the very top of the block. At the entrance, residents will be greeted by a spherical lobby made of glass, and behind it will be a permanent exhibition commemorating Ayrton Senna. Inside, visitors will be able to see items related to the driver’s career such as trophies, photographs, personal items and even the Lotus 99T car in which Senna drove during the 1987 season.
A stepped tower will ascend through rows of terraces. Clubs, tennis courts, shops and swimming pools will also be important spaces in this section. Further floors will offer gyms, spas and heated pools. The most important thing, however, is the flats themselves, of which there are to be 228. Although the majority are luxury flats of no more than 400 sq m, the huge skyscraper has room for 18 large mansions and six penthouses. The largest penthouses will cover an area in excess of 900sq m.
American record holder
Senna Tower is also set to lead innovation on the continent. Residents will be able to use the fastest lifts in Brazil. According to the developer, the lift cabin is expected to go from the ground floor to the top floor in one minute. Such a tall skyscraper will be a major challenge for engineers to install a tuned mass damper (TMD). Mounted at the top, the device, which consists of a huge sphere and a chamber filled with oil, prevents the effects of earthquakes and vibrations. This will be the first solution of its kind in South America. You can read about one of the first applications of the TMD HERE.
The world’s tallest residential skyscraper in a medium-sized city is a rather unexpected sight. What’s more, if the height of Senna Tower does indeed reach 550m, the building will become the seventh tallest skyscraper in the world. This means that the Brazilian colossus will surpass with its height the tallest building in the Americas, the One World Trade Center in New York.
Photo source: Senna Tower
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