建筑奇观：意大利米兰世博会

Milan does not have the grandeur of Roman or Venetian architecture, but the city is the finanical heart and undisputed design captial of Itlay. One kilometer from Milan Cathedral, a new architectural wonder is rising. Porta Nuova promises to revive the neglected outskirts of the city.

In Itlay, it's not just fashion, design and food. Now four, I would say, the first one is our land, and this is the de natural resources, like the Middle East have their oil. We have our oil in our land. And now we have to take it back and create value and Expo tower is an example.

Vauled at more than 2 billion dollars, Porta Nuova is 60 percent financed by European investors, with remaining 40 percent funded by Qatar holdings. At 290,000 square meters, the site will encompass office, residential and green space.

Milan is already known as a center for finance and fashion, and this complex speaks to both, but the developer wanted to add a third pillar, if you will, that being technology, to make it edger. It has delivered by having Google set up its Italian headquarters here.

Cutting-edge architecture has helped make Porta Nuova unique. The most spectacular build is the Bosco Verticale, or Vertical Forest. At 231 meters, this curve tower is UniCredit Groups' European headquarters. Its 4,000 employees help bring it to life.

General Manager, Paolo Fiorentino, feels the building is more than just a skyscraper.

The feedback is so positive that we replicate this project also in other cities, like Vienna, **, but we change the overall headquarter's philosophy in the group. We change some processes pushed by this new environment.

But can the Milanese, with the taste for traditional bricks and mortar, approve of this metal-and-glass intrusion into their city skyline?

We are not used to hide the sky light, so you turn your head and woof, and now you lift your head up.

To get a local prospective, I met with a contemporay architect and designer in his new offices, a converted church.

That's new way of building, for Milano, is really unusual. And I guess people are likely to be used to it.

Porta Nuova is on target for completion next year, in time for the Milan Expo 2015.

John Defterios, cnn, Milan, Italy.