It has been observed many times in the past that when a corporation builds a monument to itself in the form of a new skyscraper, it tends to portend an eminent downfall. Brand new expensive buildings may reflect a dangerous hubris in company management. Enron's $100 million new skyscaper was nearly completed in the fall of 2001, right before Enron's spectacular collapsed.

From Fortune, Sept 5, 2005:

"It's an architectural extravaganza--a spectacular display of money, power, and hubris. But if history is any guide, companies that build such monuments tend to do so at the peak of their power, when they are convinced they'll always cast as long a shadow over the business landscape as they do at that moment. All too often, though, they build these shrines to themselves on fundamentally shaky ground."

With a $5 billion real estate and shopping mall development completed (including several new office and residential towers) will LDS, Inc fall victim to the skyscraper curse? At the very least, it reflects a real hubris at the top of church management.

I can't help but think water leaking through the conference center roof is also a nice metaphor. Tick tock tick tock, LDS, Inc. All that money and power with no accountability or oversight is a recipe for disaster.

well said.

other examples would B A +

Chrysler Building?

The football stadium has be re-named at least Once.

Mall + Conference Center = (?)

Time Warner started building its new $1.8 billion headquarter in November 2000, a couple of months before merging with AOL.

NY Times finished a new 52 story skyscraper in Manhattan, right before the 2008 market crash.

The Tower of Babel perhaps? :)

I think you're drawing a false parallel. You can as easily compare it to North Korea, which has been starving its brainwashed people and building monuments to "prove" how great it is for decades now.

Monuments are the sign of megalomania. Which does usually collapse eventually - but I don't know if they're the sign of its imminence.