Earthscraper?

The Mexican architecture firm BNKR Arquitectura has recently presented a radical idea to the Mixico City building authorities regarding a large, empty square of land in the middle of the city. Because of ordinances which limit building height, the BNKR architects decided on a design which would place the entire structure, all 984' of it, below ground. The design is essentially an inverted pyramid with the 'base' being at ground level and covered with steel and glass panels to provide as much natural light within the structure as possible.

This design is only in it's infancy and has many hurdles to clear before it could be seriously considered for construction. Emergency escape provisions, ventilation, ground water control, earthquake resistance, and lighting into the lowest sections of the building pose very challenging road blocks to this proposal. Esteban Suarez, the co-founder of BNKR, states that the firm is continuing to develop the design and address solutions to the various concerns. Ideas for fiber optic lighting to the lower levels, diversion of groundwater for power generation, and emergency elevator systems have already been brought forward as potential solutions to some of these complications. Mr. Suarez seems confident in his firm's design and plans to take it to the Mexico City authorities for consideration.

The design is truly unique. It is a great example of brainstorming and thinking 'outside the box'. Only time will tell if BNKR Arquitectura is really on to something here. Maybe some day we will have unobstructed views of the landscape-

More information can be found in this CNN report.
Details about BNKR Arquitectura.