‘World's most stubborn neighbour' builds giant PYRAMID on top of his home after developers demolished village around him

The Sun

17-06-2025

A STUBBORN homeowner turned his humble adobe into a towering pyramid after his village was flattened to create a luxury resort.
Chen Tianming, 42, ignored demolition orders and built a 10-storey ramshackle tower in his village in southwestern China.
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Chen has spent seven years and over 100,000 yuan (£10,300) building his towering labyrinth, according to AFP.
Authorities flattened most of Chen's village in 2018 to make way for an 800-acre luxury resort, complete with a theatre and artificial lake.
His hometown of Xingyi, nestled in Guizhou province, is famed for its lush rice paddies and idyllic mountain views.
Despite promises of compensation, Chen's parents refused to give up on their home - built by his grandfather in the 1980s - and Chen vowed to protect it.
So Chen took a stand, slowly stacking the stone bungalow higher and higher.
He now boasts a 10-storey, pyramid-shaped maze of staircases, wooden beams, balconies and improvised add-ons.
Chen told AFP: "I started building out of practicality, trying to renovate and expand our home.
"But then it became more of an interest and hobby that I enjoyed."
His lack of building permits and refusal to obey demolition notices has sparked multiple run-ins with the local government.
But Chen claims he does not mind - his worries disappear when he's up in his bungalow, gazing at the mountains and distant buildings.
He said: "People often say it's unsafe and should be demolished... but I'll definitely never let anyone tear it down."
While the resort project was eventually scrapped, Chen's neighbours had already moved out, their homes razed to the ground.
Despite this, Chen says he continues to receive demolition threats.
Last August, authorities declared Chen's towering home an illegal construction and ordered him to tear down everything - except the original bungalow - within five days.
Chen says he has lost several preliminary hearings and spent tens of thousands of yuan battling the notices in court.
He awaits his next hearing.
He said: "I'm not worried. Now that there's no one developing the land, there's no need for them to knock the place down.
Lighten up with decorative lanterns at night, his house has unsurprisingly become a tourist attraction.
Local resident He Diezhen told AFP that she finds the home "beautiful", adding, "if there are no safety issues, it could become an (official) local landmark".
Chinese media have compared the whimsical tower to creations made by the legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki.
It comes as another stubborn homeowner built a tall, narrow house to spite his neighbours who tried to get him to sell.
Developer John Atkins built the eyebrow-raising structure in Jacksonville, Florida, deliberately to look over neighbours' gardens and block their views.
The new owner, Mike Cavanagh, 51, is defiantly proud of the nuisance it has caused.