As if straight out of an apocalyptic scene, the ruins of the Riomar building in the Havana neighborhood of Miramar stand as another example of a Cuba falling apart. Despite the severe deterioration of what was once an impressive 11-story building with 201 apartments, several families are scraping by in the crumbling apartments of the building.
A recent video by the YouTube channel JSant TV interviewed several of the residents—people who, for various reasons, ended up on the streets and have attempted to make the Riomar their home, with some having lived there for over five years. The Riomar, now an exotic backdrop for music videos, survives amidst graffiti, rubble, and even family photos of those who once lived there.
The History of Riomar
The building dates back to 1957 and was a project by architect Cristóbal Martínez Márquez. Its first owner was the Mercantile Company "Propiedad Horizontal Miramar S.A.". It was an elegant building, featuring a lobby, reception, mailboxes, telephone switchboard, party rooms, two pools, six elevators, and parking spaces for each of its many apartments, among other amenities.
This idyllic setting persisted until 1960 when Cuba's Urban Reform Law was enacted. Many owners fled the country and lost their apartments. Unlike other similar buildings, these apartments were never handed over to ordinary Cubans but were instead designated for so-called "foreign technicians" who arrived on the island over the decades to perform various functions.
In 2001, the former company Cubalse made an attempt to restore the building for office use, a project that fell through due to the scale of the investment required. And so, the Riomar has remained in ruins for over two decades, a silent and sad witness to a Cuba that once was.