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The deterioration of the iconic Mirador de Guisa, in the province of Granma, has sparked outrage among residents and emigrants from the Granma municipality, after images showing the building in a state of significant neglect circulated on social media.
The content creator Rickee Estrada recently shared on his Facebook profile photographs that confirm the destruction of the site, founded on December 31, 1983, and regarded for decades as a family gathering place and one of the greatest local pride.
"They have allowed the destruction of a historical and emblematic place in my town," he wrote, describing broken windows, accumulated trash, fallen trees, and ruined interior areas.
El Mirador, located atop a hill and famous for its structure and wide staircases, was a must-visit spot for tourists and a regular venue for social gatherings.
In March 2020, the official newspaper La Demajagua reported that the venue was undergoing major renovations, which included "15 rooms, the replacement of the thatch roof of the restaurant, as well as the kitchen and terrace."
Additionally, "work is being done on the construction of a swimming pool, a park, improvements to the electrical and sanitary systems, as well as landscaping and a perimeter fence," the source added at that time.
In the comments on the post, dozens of users directly held the Government responsible for the decline.
Some have reported the alleged practice of allowing public facilities to collapse in order to then award partial repairs to private micro, small, and medium enterprises linked to officials, a practice reminiscent of what occurred in the former Soviet Union, where party officials became oligarchs and owners of companies that acquired bankrupt businesses for a pittance after the system's collapse.
Others associated the ruin of the site with the prevailing political model on the island and spoke of "institutional abandonment" and "negligence."
Several testimonies described the place as completely uninhabited, with broken glass scattered on the ground and lacking any kind of maintenance.
"It's very sad to see it like this," wrote a user who claimed to have tried to show the site to her son a few days ago, only to encounter a "depressing" scene.
The case of the Mirador de Guisa adds to an extensive list of public and heritage spaces in Cuba that are experiencing significant deterioration amid the economic crisis and lack of state investment.
Among them are the historic convent of Los Escolapios in Guanabacoa; the San Pedro campground in Artemisa; the San Rafael cemetery in Guantánamo; the El Arte printing house in Manzanillo; the Máximo Gómez airport in Ciego de Ávila; the former Oriental Park racetrack in Havana; as well as the Cubanacán Art Schools, considered one of the most significant architectural works of the revolutionary period, among numerous other examples.
The gradual collapse of cultural and recreational infrastructures has raised increasing questions about the management of public heritage in Cuba, in a context of resource scarcity, mass migration, and institutional weakening.
So far, local authorities have not made any statements regarding the situation of the Guisa Lookout or any potential restoration plans.
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