Despite Rumors, Finishing the ‘World’s Worst Building’ in North Korea ‘Highly Unlikely’

By Steve Delahoyde on August 12, 2008 8:55 AM

Following up on an interesting bit of interesting we were talking about way back in February concerning what Eva Hagberg, Ms. UnBeige 2.0, called “The Worst Building in the History of Mankind” in Esquire, the unfinished Ryugyong Hotel in North Korea. While it has sat dormant for over 20 years, towering over the country’s capital, rumors have begun circulating that the government might be putting the wheels in motion to resurrect the project and finally finish the hotel, spawned by jealousy over Seoul, South Korea receiving the honor of the 2010 World Design Capital. While, like all things North Korea, nothing can be either confirmed or denied, Architectural Record is reporting that it’s highly unlikely that any work is being done to the Ryugyong, considering the costs involved and the state of the country at the moment:

For those fascinated with the “Phantom Pyramid,” as some have called Ryugyong, the rumor might be a case of wishful instead of rational thinking. Even if the government of North Korea — where 25 percent of the population faces famine, according to the United Nation’s World Food Program — had the estimated $300 million needed to finish Ryugyong, it could encounter big obstacles. First and foremost, it would need to repair an enormous structural frame that has been exposed to the elements for 20 years. “That can be tricky with a concrete building,” explains architect Eric Howeler, AIA, author of Skyscraper: Vertical Now. Plus there is no guarantee that the hotel would be profitable. Just 2,000 Westerners visited North Korea in 2007 — a fraction of the number needed to keep the “Hotel of Doom” in business for the long haul, let alone fill it on a single night.