Prince speaks out against London skyscrapers teen fashion

LONDON - Prince Charles warned that historic sites like the Towerof London have been "vandalized" by high-rise construction thatthreatens to ruin the character of the capital.

The heir to the British throne, who spoke at a conference on cityplanning, argued that poor planning could damage the integrity ofBritain's historical areas - particularly criticizing tall buildingsthat dwarf smaller structures.

"We seem to be determined to vandalize these few remaining siteswhich retain the kind of human scale and timeless character that soattract people to them and which increase in value as time goes by,"Charles said at St. James' Palace.

The speech was a challenge to London Mayor Ken Livingstone'ssupport for a project near the Tower. The building, known as the"Shard of Glass," would be Britain's tallest skyscraper.

Charles suggested tall buildings be clustered in corporate areas.He pointed to Paris' La Defense, a business district full ofskyscrapers kept separate from the city's famous museums andlandmarks.

"The key point I want to make is that I am not opposed to alltall buildings," he said. "My concern is that they should beconsidered in their context; in other words, they should be putwhere they fit properly."

His speech also took aim at plans to build more than 3 millionnew homes by 2020.