New York, New York, USA – Engineer and architect Santiago Calatrava has won an international design competition for a landmark observation tower in Dubai Creek Harbor, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai announced recently.

Mr Calatrava’s soaring tower design, one of six proposals submitted by competing firms, is inspired by Islamic architecture and fuses modern, sustainable design with the rich culture and heritage of the United Arab Emirates.

“This architectural wonder will be as great as the Burj Khalifa and the Eiffel Tower,” said His Highness Shaikh Mohammad.

“Combining Islamic architecture with modern design, the tower at Dubai Creek will become a national monument as well as a cultural and tourist destination,” said Mohammad Ali Al Alabbar, President of Emaar Properties, which will develop the tower together with Dubai Holding. Emaar Properties is the same firm that built the Burj Khalifa, currently the tallest building in the world.

“We feel extremely thankful and honoured to have been selected for such an important project,” said Santiago Calatrava. “Dubai is one of the places where innovative and revolutionary architecture is making incredible strides. In our proposed design, we have united local traditional architecture with that of the 21st century.”