Insurgentes 300, Modernist residential tower in Colonia Roma, Mexico City, Mexico
Insurgentes 300, also known as Condominio Insurgentes or Edificio Canada, is a 19-floor commercial and residential building at Avenida de los Insurgentes 300 in Colonia Roma, Mexico City, designed by Mario Pani. It has an elevator bank and a heliport, and its side once carried the giant letters of the advertisement "CANADA".
Mario Pani designed the building, which obtained its permit in 1956 and opened in 1958 as one of Mexico's first tall condominiums. It combined 420 offices with residences and had an elevator bank and a heliport. In 1995 Judge Abraham Antonio Polo Uscanga was assassinated here, and after the 2012 Guerrero-Oaxaca earthquake the building was evacuated.
For years, a large 'CANADA' advertisement covered the facade and became a landmark for people in the neighborhood. That sign was later reimagined as an art installation at Museo Carrillo Gil.
The building stands on one of the busiest avenues in Mexico City and is easy to spot from the street. It is a private residential and commercial building, so visitors can only see the exterior from the sidewalk.
The building originally had a heliport on its roof, which was very unusual for a residential building in 1950s Mexico City. This detail gives a sense of how forward-looking the project was at the time.
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