In an opinion piece, the author argues that the Normandie Hotel, San Juan's iconic Art Deco, ocean-liner-shaped landmark near Old San Juan and Escambrón Beach, should be imploded after more than 20 years of abandonment. Though self-described as a longtime advocate for preserving Puerto Rico's architectural heritage, the writer says restoration debates have stalled for years over parking issues—whether to build a public or private garage, use adjacent public land, or go underground—while the building continues to deteriorate from salt air corrosion and repeated hurricane damage.
The author notes the hotel once operated successfully with the same amount of parking it has today, and argues that the property's greatest strength is its walkable location between Old San Juan and Condado, comparing it to urban hotels in Boston, Chicago, London, Paris, Copenhagen and New York where visitors don't need cars. The piece contends that continued delay makes eventual restoration increasingly unlikely to be economically or structurally feasible, framing the endless parking debate—not engineering, architecture, or funding—as the true obstacle to the hotel's revival.