A skyline of skeleton towers

Reflecting the blue skies above, the Jordan Gate towers are the tallest — and arguably the emptiest — buildings on the Amman horizon. King Abdullah II in 2005 laid the foundation stone for the prestigious project, which was said to become the business address in the Hashemite Kingdom. Since 2009 however, the two giant cranes standing next to the towers have remained idle. The top floors have never been built and part of the glass exterior has come off. Today, the $300 million project remains a grim reminder of the days when the sky seemed the limit for Amman real estate. The Jordan Gate was an initiative of the Gulf Finance House (GFH), a Bahrain-based investment firm badly hit by the 2008 financial crisis. GFH needed a $300 million loan to stay afloat and in 2010 escaped default only by agreeing to postpone the final repayment of $100 million. According