Built out of spite, Lebanon’s skinniest building now among most valued real estate

Built out of spite, Lebanon’s skinniest building now among most valued real estate

A Lebanese man in the 1950s elevated petty sibling rivalry to another level when he built the country's skinniest building that looks just like a wall — with the sole purpose of ruining his brother's seafront view.It is now one of the most-valued real estate properties in the city, says Sandra Rishani, an architect and urban planner who researched the extraordinary history of the building.The building — called “The Grudge” — dates back to 1954, when it was constructed reportedly out of brotherly spite. Standing near the old lighthouse in Beirut, the property known as “al-Ba`sa”, meaning “the grudge,” is just two feet wide at its narrowest and 14 feet at widest, reported The Insider.But despite its petite size, the building was habitable and has rooms, kitchen, huge windows for sunlight and, of course, a sea view. According to the story widely known among the locals, it started after the brothers inherited two plots from their father. They were unable to reach a conclusion on how to split the land and the dispute was further exacerbated after one part of the property was taken into road infrastructure. The series of events, including municipal infrastructure projects, led to the origin of