Residents of Kazakhstan’s capital Astana will soon be able to ski off their roof, down to the street below. A new planned housing complex, dubbed the House Slalom was devised by a group of architects, led by Shokhan Mataibekov, who were inspired by Kazakhstan’s exceedingly long, cold winter. Despite suffering bitterly cold winters where temperatures regularly fall below minus 15 Celsius (5 Fahrenheit), Astana has few places where local ski and snowboard enthusiasts can hone their skills.
Slalom House In Kazakhastan Allows Residents To Ski Off Their Front Door
That will now be changed thanks to Slalom House – a multi-purpose, 21-storey building comprised of shops on the ground floor, 421 flats on the upper floors, and an outdoor 1,000ft ski slope running alongside the building.
Plans have been submitted, and the project is currently awaiting approval from city officials. If successful, the building would be the first of its kind in the world. Mataibekov told that the project will cost roughly $70 million and that there are already parties interested in taking the design proposals further.
