Spain skyscraper with no elevators nearly complete

ALICANTE, Spain, Aug. 10 (UPI) -- Builders in Spain say adding exterior elevator shafts seems to be the only Plan B available for a 47-story skyscraper that currently only has stairs.

In a major oversight, the InTempo building in Alicante was designed, approved and well under construction before anyone realized the plans did not include elevator shafts.

The project was 94 percent completed as of Saturday and many of its apartments were sold as workers continued to lug materials up daunting flights of stairs. The grand opening is scheduled for December; however bolting exterior elevators will add significant cost to the project.

The shaft gaff did not occur in a vacuum, the New York Daily News said this week. The project appeared to have been rushed through the approval process so it could be seen as a sign of progress among Spain's economic turmoil.

The newspaper said there was a lack of stability in the financing of InTempo. The project was taken over late last year by a so-called bad bank, which was established by the European Commission and are eligible for bailouts on toxic real estate investments.