High-Rise Boom Building Mexico City’s Future

By Edwin Tamayo, Senior Project Manager

Since its founding, Mexico City has transformed from a land of Aztec temples and the ancient city of Tenochtitlan to a sprawling metropolis serving 22 million residents. It boasts an eclectic mix of historic and modern buildings, all constructed over the site of a dried lake.

Years of heavy investment in the country’s real estate developments have culminated in Mexico City becoming one of the most active commercial construction markets. Over the past 30 years, the commercial sector has invested $167 billion in Mexico’s building projects, with an additional $19 billion in investment.

Mixed-Use Buildings on the Rise

Many of the city’s high-rises are built for mixed-use purposes. Multi-use buildings have become increasingly popular, representing an estimated 30 percent of the country’s real estate projects.

These buildings have added more residential units in recent years, while others are in the pipeline or the planning stages. Mexican government housing officials and the building industry say this building activity must continue growing to remedy the country’s urban housing shortage.

Mexico City’s High-Rises Face Unique Challenges

Building in Mexico City, especially high-rises, is a significant engineering achievement. Commercial construction projects are costly, complicated and time-consuming because the city is in a major earthquake zone. Architects and builders must adhere to strict design requirements and construction practices and use innovative seismic-protection technologies to build resilient structures.

Another challenge is that the city is built over a lake, creating an unstable foundation. Researchers have found that the city has sunk 30 feet in the past 150 years. One study shows that parts of the city drop as much as 20 inches yearly.

Despite these challenges, Mexico City has built some of the most extraordinary high-rises in the world.

As a global design-build firm, The Beck Group has played an essential role in contributing to the modernization of Mexico City and other parts of the country. Some of Beck’s high-rise projects represent the innovation and ingenuity shaping Mexico City’s vision for the future.

Be Grand Reforma 

Be Grand Reforma is a 1.56 million SF, 56-story Class A residential mixed-use tower located on Paseo de la Reforma, the central avenue of Mexico City. Designed as a twin tower, Be Grand Reforma will include 11 floors of offices, 39 floors of residential units, four floors of high-end apartments, a rooftop penthouse, and an eight-level underground parking garage.

When completed in late 2023, the skyscraper will be the city’s 8th tallest high-rise and the 24th tallest building in Mexico. Be Grand Reforma will include a pool, gym, an events center, spa facilities and a host of other amenities. The project is also seeking LEED Silver certification.

The Summit-Santa Fe

The Summit-Santa Fe is a 1.48 million SF, 27-story mixed-use building with office and retail space. Located in front of the Parque La Mexicana, the project also includes ten levels of underground parking with a capacity for more than 2,250 vehicles. The building also has received LEED Gold certification.

All two levels of the building’s retail are distinguished by their open spaces and terraces, with one of them built underground. In the middle of the building, the “core” of the office tower stands nearly 194,000 SF above the two levels of retail space.

The tower has double access by Avenida Santa Fe and Prolongación de la Reforma. Its prime location is in the heart of entertainment, inspiration and relaxation areas.

Mexico City’s Construction Boom

Mexico City’s push toward modernization has produced a commercial construction boom, yielding hundreds of striking high-rise buildings that capture residents’ and tourists’ eyes and imaginations.

These modern structures embody Mexico’s growing reputation as a progressive and influential global power while embracing its rich past and culture.