Dangerous (holes in the floor, many unstable areas)
I actually came across this place by coincidence and saw this beautiful structure calling out to be explored. It took me quite some time.
At first, it seemed easy—the front door was open to some small shops. But unfortunately, it didn’t lead properly into the building.
So I walked around and climbed onto the scaffolding, which wasn’t put up for renovation but simply for safety, to protect people from falling debris caused by the building’s deterioration. But since we are the best Lost places page, I eventually found an entrance. It was a bit dangerous, as some of the floor panels barely covered the deep hole leading down to B2.
(Good thing I didn’t go in at night — I would have missed the hole.)
And then the beauty became accessible. Right away, it started with a small local temple (Tudigong)—somewhat unsettling.
The fact that it still stands is probably because decomposed bodies were once found here. Later on, I will tell the whole story, including why Taiwan struggles so much with its old buildings. There are quite a few misunderstandings about the Taiwanese system.
The Lai-Ya Tower, known as “Tainan’s last haunted building,” has been abandoned for many years, yet there are still seven households living inside. It has 13 floors above ground and 2 basement levels and is located in the West Central District—a very prime location. Built in 1985, it was originally a mixed residential-commercial building. Floors 4 to 7 were residential units, while floors 8 to 12 were the Lai-Ya Hotel. Although the building has been abandoned for one or two decades, many hotel beds and pieces of furniture remain inside. In the past, homeless people frequently broke in to live there. The upper floors now show exposed steel bars and concrete carbonation, approaching the condition of “sea-sand houses” (buildings damaged by saline concrete). Many original residents, worried about safety, have moved out.
Later, due to the severe deterioration of the building, pieces of the exterior wall fell off and injured people, causing it to be labeled a “dangerous structure” and sealed off. Some streamers once entered to explore and found a decomposed body inside, prompting a police investigation. This made the building notorious as a “haunted house.”
According to the primary owner, the building cannot apply for urban renewal because the land area is less than 500 ping (about 1,650 m²). Therefore, the co-owners plan to pool funds and carry out reconstruction themselves. The Tainan Urban Development Bureau had offered assistance, aiming to promote efficient land use, revitalize urban functions, improve living environments, and enhance public benefit. However, because the building is completely privately owned, the owners must apply for urban renewal themselves. The city government had previously provided guidance and assistance to the owners in organizing an urban-renewal plan. But because the building is old and the property rights are highly fragmented, negotiations must be conducted with each owner individually, making the integration process extremely long and time-consuming. In December 2013, the city government helped apply to the Ministry of the Interior’s Construction and Planning Agency for an extension of the renewal plan period to protect the rights of all stakeholders and allow smoother progress.
(very dark in the first floor)
In January 2025, an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 caused façade tiles and parts of the parapet of the Lai-Ya Tower to fall off, damaging two parked cars. Safety nets were installed afterwards in March 2025. A structural safety assessment found that the building violated multiple standards: excessive chloride levels (indicating “sea-sand concrete”), concrete spalling, and exposed rebar. The report concluded that the building should be completely demolished. The Public Works Bureau gave the owners a 45-day deadline to dismantle the building themselves — if they fail to do so, the authorities may intervene.
(very small units)
Although demolition has been approved, the process is delayed: the city government stated that the demolition method is “complex,” and a second bidding process is currently underway.
https://www.ettoday.net/amp/amp_news.php7?news_id=2108783&from=ampshare-fbmsg-fixed
