Let's say you're a very wealthy person living in Beijing's Haidian district. You've got a nice apartment on the top floor of a luxury high-rise, but you can't help feeling you want something…more.
For one Chinese mogul, the solution was to build his very own private villa on the roof of the building, complete with ornamental rock outcroppings and security cameras.
Other apartment residents told the Associated Press that the whole operation took more than six years to complete, with much of the construction occurring at night — that is, when the owner wasn't hosting loud parties instead.
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Noise complaints aside, the biggest concerns were of a structural nature.
"We feel this is extremely unsafe," one resident told the Beijing Morning Post. "What if the top collapses in rain and wind storms? What if our ceiling collapses?"
After photos of the villa began popping up around the web on Monday, the pressure on the building's management only mounted. Now, the bizarre structure appears destined for destruction:
"Haidian district urban management official Dai Jun said Tuesday that authorities would tear the two-story structure down in 15 days unless the owner does so himself or presents evidence it was legally built. Dai said his office has yet to receive such evidence." [Associated Press]
The owner doesn't seem to think it's such a big deal. After all, he told the Beijing Times that the structure was "just an ornamental garden."
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