Venezuela tackles decay in celebrated capital complex

A plumber repairs pipes inside an apartment at the Parque Central complex, once envisioned as a futuristic "city within a city" for Venezuela’s emerging middle class and now undergoing new restoration efforts, in Caracas, Venezuela August 25, 2025. REUTERS/Gaby Oraa

CARACAS (Reuters) -For the first residents of Parque Central in Caracas, moving into the futuristic, vertical "city within a city" was the dream of an emerging Venezuelan middle class. Now, after decades of decay, a new effort is underway to restore the renowned complex.

Planned in 1969 and inaugurated in stages over the following decade, Parque Central was built on 30 hectares (74 acres) in the heart of the capital. It includes seven 20-floor residential buildings and two 59-floor office towers, which stood as the tallest in Latin America until the early 2000s.