Tall & Urban News

The Trump Organization’s Uruguay project has reportedly stalled and is four years behind schedule. This is one of the Trump family company’s most ambitious ongoing development projects—a 25-story, 156-condominium waterfront tower, complete with an indoor tennis court, multiple swimming pools and a rooftop helipad. According to The New York Times, the project—which started in 2012—was supposed to be finished in 2016, but the building now has a completion date of 2020.

“Of course not,” the construction workers’ union leader said when asked if the project would be finished on-time. The leader then claimed the building might take until 2024 to finish. Less than a fourth of the necessary workers needed to complete the building are currently working on it, with only one electrician wiring the whole building.

The tower is also reportedly having issues with funding. Some initial buyers pulled out upon finding out that YY Development Group, the building company, took out two US$5 million loans while building the project. Despite Eric Trump—the president’s son—telling local media that 82 units had sold, those sales only raised half of the expected cash.

Some purchasers are now seeking to sell their units, potentially driving down the prices just as the project needs to drum up cash via the sale of new units. The Miami-based broker handling the sales of condos has sued Mr. Trump’s local developer.

In addition, three apartments were sold to companies and individuals tied to two Uruguayan accountants who set up shell companies for law firm Mossack Fonseca—the subject of leaked files that revealed offshore money laundering and tax evasion. Uruguay in particular is a notorious haven for money laundering, with a Mexican drug gang washing their money through real estate in the country in one instance.

As with its other international developments, the Trump Organization is not actually building the Punta del Este tower. Instead, it licensed the Trump name and takes a cut of the revenue from selling units. The problems in Uruguay are a microcosm of the challenges facing the company as it stakes its future on projects outside the United States. In February, the Trump Organization announced that it would discontinue any new hotel projects in the United States. As a result, it is more reliant than ever on long-running international projects, such as the ones in Uruguay, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates.

For more on this story go to The Daily Beast and The Independent.