Chicago is credited as the city that gave birth to the world's first true skyscraper, but what if the Windy City was the first in the world to build a humongous vertical city? And by vertical city, we're not talking about Bertrand Goldberg's Marina City here, we're talking about crazy-pipedream-never-in-a-million-years-will-happen type of gargantuan towers that dwarf the rest of downtown and make Chicago's already tall towers look like child's play. Architects Kenneth King and Kellogg Wong believe that for large cities to grow in a sustainable way, they need taller and more dense buildings. Fast Company recently highlighted King and Wong's vision for tall, dense vertical cities within cities as well as some renderings of what Chicago could one day look like with such a cluster of towers.

Although totally absurd, Chicago doesn't necessarily shy away from ambitious projects. Hugely expensive and just plain massive developments that come to mind include the Chicago Lakeside Development and of course, the Chicago Spire. However, the future of the Lakeside Development is still a bit uncertain, but the Chicago Spire is history. It's more than safe to say that Chicago is a very unlikely candidate for one of these literally over the top vertical cities, but it's still fun to look at.

A Vision Of The Vertical Cities Of The Future [Fast Co.]

Vertical City : A Solution for Sustainable Living [Kickstarter]