He is the genius behind some of the world's most spectacular bridges, museums and airports, but Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava cannot plug a leaking roof, according to a client who is demanding he contribute to the €2m (£1.7m) needed to pay someone else to do the job. A dozen years after Calatrava built the spectacular Ysios winery in the rainy Alava region of northern Spain, the building's dramatic, undulating roof continues to let in the damp.
Now Domecq, the owner of the winery, has said it is fed up with the botched attempts of Calatrava's original builders at fixing the roof and wants money from them so that it can bring in fresh architects and engineers to design a new one.
An expert's report that accompanies a writ lodged at a court in Vitoria claims that the roof, made of wood and aluminium, has never managed to keep the rain out. The firm pledges to maintain the original outline designed by Calatrava – an architect and engineer sometimes compared with fellow Spaniard Antoni Gaudí – but says that the leaks are damaging its image.
The row comes on the top of complaints in Calatrava's home city of Valencia about the slowly wrinkling, ceramic outer skin of the city's emblematic Palau de Les Arts, where tiles have started to shake loose.
Opposition politicians in Valencia claim that the overall budget for his spaceship-like arts and science complex in the city has quadrupled to €1bn – with almost €100m for the architect's firm. They have demanded that Zurich-based Calatrava, who responded that "his honour was wounded", give some of the money back.
"It has not just put Valencia on the map, but is the second-most visited cultural centre in Spain, after the Alhambra," the architect once declared.
He is also on record as saying that his fees for various projects in the city were perfectly reasonable.
Yet another row, this time with Italian authorities, has seen doubts raised about the cost of his bridge over the Grand Canal in Venice – the first bridge to be built there in 75 years. Authorities now demand that he and others involved cover some €4m of spending, while Il Giornale newspaper recently claimed the city had received some 5,000 complaints from those who have used it, including some who also claim it is too slippery.
In northern Bilbao, meanwhile, his Zubizuri bridge over the river Nervión has been dubbed the "wipe-out" bridge, because of the number of people who have slipped and fallen. Authorities there have also reportedly had to spend up to €6,000 a year replacing broken tiles.
The mayor of Bilbao, Iñaki Azkuna, who lost a case against him after authorities altered the original design of his bridge, once declared: "I'm fed up with the dictatorship of Calatrava." In Oviedo a court has ordered that the architect and construction firms involved in building a conference hall there should pay €3m to the insurance firm after part of the structure collapsed during building.
The Oviedo hall's infamous, huge mechanical visor has never worked because of problems with its hydraulics. Calatrava is currently battling the building's owners through the courts after they blamed him and refused to pay his full fees.
But for every Calatrava building that gets into trouble, there are several that survive without creating polemic. They include two bridges in Dublin and Manchester, railway stations in Lisbon, Liege and Lyon and buildings in New York and Milwaukee.
Calatrava did not respond to questions sent to his Zurich office.
Related Stories
Sponsored | BD+C University Course | Jan 17, 2024
Waterproofing deep foundations for new construction
This continuing education course, by Walter P Moore's Amos Chan, P.E., BECxP, CxA+BE, covers design considerations for below-grade waterproofing for new construction, the types of below-grade systems available, and specific concerns associated with waterproofing deep foundations.
Sponsored | Performing Arts Centers | Jan 17, 2024
Performance-based facilities for performing arts boost the bottom line
A look at design trends for “budget-wise” performing arts facilities reveals ways in which well-planned and well-built facilities help performers and audiences get the most out of the arts. This continuing education course is worth 1.0 AIA learning unit.
Giants 400 | Jan 15, 2024
Top 130 Hospital Facility Architecture Firms for 2023
HKS, HDR, Stantec, CannonDesign, and Page Southerland Page top BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest hospital facility architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report.
Airports | Jan 15, 2024
How to keep airports functional during construction
Gensler's aviation experts share new ideas about how to make the airport construction process better moving forward.
Adaptive Reuse | Jan 12, 2024
Office-to-residential conversions put pressure on curbside management and parking
With many office and commercial buildings being converted to residential use, two important issues—curbside management and parking—are sometimes not given their due attention. Cities need to assess how vehicle storage, bike and bus lanes, and drop-off zones in front of buildings may need to change because of office-to-residential conversions.
MFPRO+ News | Jan 12, 2024
As demand rises for EV chargers at multifamily housing properties, options and incentives multiply
As electric vehicle sales continue to increase, more renters are looking for apartments that offer charging options.
Student Housing | Jan 12, 2024
UC Berkeley uses shipping containers to block protestors of student housing project
The University of California at Berkeley took the drastic step of erecting a wall of shipping containers to keep protestors out of a site of a planned student housing complex. The $312 million project would provide badly needed housing at the site of People’s Park.
Giants 400 | Jan 12, 2024
Top 10 Casino Architecture Firms for 2023
JCJ Architecture, HBG Design, Gensler, and WATG top BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest casino architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report.
Senior Living Design | Jan 11, 2024
Designing for personal technology is crucial for senior living facilities
Today’s seniors are increasingly tech savvy. It isn’t enough to give senior living residents a pre-determined bundle of technology and assume that they’ll be satisfied.
Giants 400 | Jan 11, 2024
Top 40 Convention Center Architecture Firms for 2023
TVS, Populous, Arcadis North America, Gensler, and EUA top BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest convention center and event facility architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report.