Kazakhstan has announced their newest architectural project for Astana, its capital: a gigantic tent containing an indoor city, designed by Norman Foster, a British architect. Called Khan Shatyry, or tent of the descendants of Genghis Khan, it is being made from special material that absorbs sunlight to create the effect of summer inside. Set to become the center of urban activities for the capital of Kazakhstan, at the northern edge of the new city axis, the building rises from a 200m elliptical base peaking on the top skyline of Astana.

The 150m-high (500ft) transparent permanent tent will be unbelievably built in approximately 12 months (?!). It will contain a cluster ~city inside city~ roughly the size of ten football pitches, about 100,000m². The concept is how to provide a sheltered environment embracing an urban-scale internal park, shopping and entertainment venue. Locals have called the building as “The Giant Yurt” and hope that it will improve the limited social life in the city.

At the core of Khan Shatyry is a broad space that will serve the cultural center, accommodating a varied programme of events and exhibitions. A 40,000m² of public space is used for wide range purposes.The retail space will provide varied sizes of stores: a grocery store, an anchor store, large stores, medium stores, and small stores. These stores are planned to accommodate shops with famous brand names as well as local brans. For leisure and open space needs there is a five screen multiplex cinema, restaurants, cafes and fast food operators, mini golf, SPA, fitness center and indoor swimming and wave pools, botanic gardens. There will be held period events in the facilities like beach volley tournaments, live performances and concerts.

For more ‘summer sense’ the dome will include artificial beaches, more than 1,000 miles to the west, and a concert hall with 5,000 seats capacity, as the president Nursultan Nazarbayev declared last week, promise “everything that a man needs for his life”, the Khan Shatyry, interpreted as the King Marquee will offer leisure facilities for all.

A park steps up the height of the building in contour terraced gardens which will stretch the area of two football pitches, also providing public space and green oases for the visitors. A tropical water park weaves its way through the landscape and its artificial wave pools river, gondolas will ply an artificial river and waterfall are lit by roof lights that are seamlessly integrated into the design. The highest terrace is a viewing deck which will offer dramatic views over the park.

The final shape of the world’s biggest tent was showed off in 3D by Mr. President. The government says it has spent $15bn (£7.7bn) on development, although it should be more than it. For this rich country, cash is second priority. But do they know that the construction company seems to be pessimistic?

“Nothing of the sort has been done before, and from the engineering point of view it’s an extremely difficult project,” says Fettah Tamince, the head of Turkey’s development company Sembol that is trusted to build the tent. Nevertheless, he is confident that his company can complete the project in a year. The latest progress in field since this article written is the foundations are still under construction.

Held by a mast, the building cable net structure is clad in ETFE (Ethylene-Tetrafluoro-Ethylene), a fluorocarbon-based polymer (a fluoropolymer) material that allows light to wash the interior spaces while sheltering them from extreme weather conditions, so that when the outside temperature is -30°C, inside the tent they will instead stay warm at a near constant 15°C.

Located in northern central Kazakhstan, Astana became the country’s capital just over 10 years ago that President Nazarbayev decided to move the capital from Almaty to the center of Kazakhstan. The capital has experienced a total reconstruction since then. Japanese architect Kisho Kurikawa is hired to design the urban concept. Norman Foster had already design Palace of Peace and Accord, a glass and steel pyramid there a year ago.Astana’s population grows fast almost to 700,000 now, making it the second largest city in the country after Almaty, the ex-capital. In a BBC interview last week, President Nazarbayev said that he is pleased with his ‘gambling’ that has been made over the past nine years and that he considers Astana one of his biggest successes. It is a high risk decision. The president has been succeeding to create a city in the steppe.

Soon Khan Shatyry will be one of the Astana’s architectural jewelry.

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