The Guadalquivir Complex and the Consolidation of the Condominium Ownership Law

Abstract

During the early decades of the 20th Century, the population of Mexico City was introduced to a new way of living: high-rise housing. Contrary to the age-old tradition of building using horizontal proportions, highrise apartment buildings were constructed with more than five floors thanks to the technological developments of the time, combined with the ideas imported from Europe. By 1950, there were already many and varied examples of high-rise apartment buildings in the city; however, the way in which their construction was financed became unprofitable. As a result, the architect Mario Pani promoted the ‘Property and Condominium Law’, the principles of which were crystallized by way of the ‘Guadalquivir Complex,’ designed by Salvador Ortega.