I know it sounds strange, but as we have reported previously, strange things happen in Las Vegas every day. According to Arabian Business, “The Harmon Hotel tower, co-owned by MGM Resorts International, was designed as a 48-storey component of the AED31.2bn ($8.5bn) CityCenter project, which opened in December 2009.” The “Harmon project” was designed to be a non-gambling hotel and retail project that is located at the entrance of the CityCenter development underwritten by Dubai World, the investment arm of the government of Dubai.
Investigators found that there were structural flaws in the concrete structure’s reinforcing steel that could possibly lead to a collapse of the building in a strong earthquake. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported:
“Chukwuma Ekwueme, the Southern California-based structural engineering expert for CityCenter, said more than 7,000 defects were observed during the fourth testing phase. Ekwueme said 100 percent of the elements tested contained at least one defect that required repair. Almost all elements contained multiple diverse defects.”
Construction was halted, and the court recently granted demolition permission for the unfinished building. The Arabian Business article continues:
“Developers are now embroiled in a lawsuit with the tower’s builder, Tutor Perini Building Company, over who's responsible for some $400 million in damages.”
The CityCenter development was designed by Foster + Partners, a global architectural firm.
Demolition should begin within a year. Las Vegas remains as strange as ever.
Image courtesy of Wikipedia.
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