Theguardian iconTheguardianSep 25, 2026

Tall, dark and hated: plan to renovate ‘Paris’s ugliest building’ put on hold

Tour Montparnasse modernisation project at a standstill after clashes over pricing and other issues It has been called a carbuncle on the Paris skyline, a sombre skyscraper where visitors to its viewing platform often joke that the city looks better when you can't see the building itself.

Tall, dark and hated: plan to renovate ‘Paris’s ugliest building’ put on hold

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Tour Montparnasse modernisation project at a standstill after clashes over pricing and other issues It has been called a carbuncle on the Paris skyline, a sombre skyscraper where visitors to its viewing...

The much-maligned Tour Montparnasse, a lone, dark monolith with tinted windows rising above a historic neighbourhood in the south of the city, is once again at the centre of controversy after its...

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Tour Montparnasse modernisation project at a standstill after clashes over pricing and other issues It has been called a carbuncle on the Paris skyline, a sombre skyscraper where visitors to its viewing platform often joke that the city looks better when you can't see the building itself. The much-maligned Tour Montparnasse, a lone, dark monolith with tinted windows rising above a historic neighbourhood in the south of the city, is once again at the centre of controversy after its long-awaited renovation was halted this week because of disagreements between its many private co-owners.

What to take from it

The much-maligned Tour Montparnasse, a lone, dark monolith with tinted windows rising above a historic neighbourhood in the south of the city, is once again at the centre of controversy after its long-awaited renovation was halted this week because of disagreements between its many private co-owners.

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  • Tour Montparnasse modernisation project at a standstill after clashes over pricing and other issues It has been called a carbuncle on the Paris skyline, a sombre skyscraper where visitors to its viewing...

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