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Posted on 09/02/2026 3:08:45 PM PDT by lowbridge
In the heart of Lower Manhattan, a 60-story glass skyscraper has been sitting abandoned and unfinished for years. It overlooks the East River. It leans three inches to the north. Glass panels have fallen off its facade. And nobody — not the developer, not the lenders, not the courts — can agree on how to fix it.
This is 161 Maiden Lane. New York City's very own Leaning Tower. A $600M luxury skyscraper that was supposed to sell 80 waterfront condos for up to $18 million each. Instead, it became one of the most expensive construction disasters in American history — and it started with a decision to save just $6 million on the foundation.
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Oddly London and New Orleans could not be a worse site for a skyscraper but both have such with no problem. London is on the London clay and totally unsuitable for such as is New Orleans on Mississippi River sediments. Both solved the problem easily but at a cost. They dug deep to below the sediments and then drove pilings many feet below this and then came concrete and a lot of concrete. Their building stand strong. The one in New York does not due to poor engineering and probably cost cutting, the latter is just a guess.
I know a geotechnical engineer that is working on that building in San Francisco. He mentioned he was going down there for a meeting and didn’t know how long he would be gone.
“Boy - I bet that is costing a ton of money.”
He said it was something like 20 professionals and 30 lawyers (or some crazy number).
The engineering problem is rather simple. How deep do you need to dig and drive pilings below to make it stable for a skyscraper? How much does it cost to do so. If you fail on cost in investment your skyscraper is not sound.
I think the big thing was figuring out who’s fault it was, and who is going to pay the cost. Or, maybe they just scrap it.
I worked on a demolition job where the guy that was supposed to put a dab of epoxy at the end of the coated rebar where they cut it didn’t do his job. They spent millions trying to repair it (it was rusting), and then had to tear the entire 14 story building down. Folks had been living in it for several years.
Never have a guy named The construction contractor named Pizza (Pizzarotti) build your tower. The guy does not have a good track record
Exactly. Just jack it up on one side and throw some shims under it. Problem solved.
Must have been some of them “less is more” engineers who designed it and surveyed the site.
Instead, it became one of the most expensive construction disasters in American history so far.
The SF building is leaning enough that it is unsafe. Or that’s what I understand.
It wouldn’t surprise me if they had to take it down.
That is a humorous coincidence.
Leaning Tower of Pisa (Pizza).
That is a humorous coincidence.
Leaning Tower of Pisa (Pizza).
Yes indeed...
You can say the same thing about at least 50% of all YouTube videos...
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