The OP’s statement “it’s easier to make a 2nd or 100th floor than it is to buy more land and put a single story building up” is technically true. But there is nowhere on Earth where 100-floor buildings are built for anything but prestige. For example, here is a photo of New York City, one of the most expensive bits of land in the world. The World Trade Center is 104 stories tall. None of the other buildings in its immediate vicinity come close to its height. (Though a handful of buildings in New York do compare to the World Trade Center.)
Tokyo, once the most valuable real estate in the entire world, does not have a building with more than 60 floors.
This presents a problem for the tenses used in the quote. It is confusing to use the word “is” to describe a situation that does not exist, as if it did. It would be better to replace “100th” with “20th” or “if the land is valuable enough, it’s easier” with “if the land was valuable enough, it would be easier”.
There are reason why there are no 100-floor buildings build in Tokyo. It’s too expensive. I don’t have the exact numbers but the floor in a single story building in Tokyo might be cheaper.
When thinking about city planning it’s important to distinguish building a 10 floor building because that’s cost effectively from building gigant phalus symbols to demostrate that your building is the biggest.
The OP’s statement “it’s easier to make a 2nd or 100th floor than it is to buy more land and put a single story building up” is technically true. But there is nowhere on Earth where 100-floor buildings are built for anything but prestige. For example, here is a photo of New York City, one of the most expensive bits of land in the world. The World Trade Center is 104 stories tall. None of the other buildings in its immediate vicinity come close to its height. (Though a handful of buildings in New York do compare to the World Trade Center.)
Tokyo, once the most valuable real estate in the entire world, does not have a building with more than 60 floors.
This presents a problem for the tenses used in the quote. It is confusing to use the word “is” to describe a situation that does not exist, as if it did. It would be better to replace “100th” with “20th” or “if the land is valuable enough, it’s easier” with “if the land was valuable enough, it would be easier”.
There are reason why there are no 100-floor buildings build in Tokyo. It’s too expensive. I don’t have the exact numbers but the floor in a single story building in Tokyo might be cheaper.
When thinking about city planning it’s important to distinguish building a 10 floor building because that’s cost effectively from building gigant phalus symbols to demostrate that your building is the biggest.
Thanks, updated.