Cuerpo Atras

Buenos Aires looks nothing like Paris largely because it was wrecked in the 1960s by all these ugly, cramped, concrete apartment towers which went up all over the city. Peron freezed rents during his time in office in the 1950s and so there was huge pent up demand. I don't know the details of the story but zoning laws were either relaxed or overcome thru bribes to build much larger buildings than what came before or has been built since. Particularly distinctive for me is the whole rear body of the building. In theory the interior of each block is supposed to be free of buildings to allow light and air in. It's actually called the pulmon or lung of the block. Buildings from this era cover nearly the entire plot.

I actually have a soft spot for these buildings. I think such an oversupply of crappy apartments keeps prices down and allows families, creative types and whatnot to continue to live in the center of the city. Buenos Aires is not a jewel like Paris and I think that's a good thing for the city's vitality.

If you know of any sites online about Buenos Aires in the 1960s, I'd be interested to hear about it in the comments.