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Estadio Olimpo Rooftop Track — Mario Palanti, Buenos Aires

1929 aerial photo of the Chrysler dealership building in Buenos Aires with a round banked test track on its roof
Artwork FileBuenos Aires, Argentina

Estadio Olimpo

Gone1994

Mario Palanti (architect) · Avenida Figueroa Alcorta 3351, Palermo Chico, Buenos Aires, Argentina · 1928

Photo: Unknown author, 1929 / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain), as published on Street Art Utopia.

Mario Palanti, the architect of Palacio Barolo, designed this Buenos Aires building in 1927 for Resta, a dealership selling Chrysler cars. It opened in 1928 with a circular, banked test track called Estadio Olimpo on its roof; since 1994 the building has been the Palacio Alcorta lofts. Source Source Source Checked

Gone 1994: Palermo Tour and Spanish Wikipedia say the building became luxury lofts in 1994 (Jalopnik gives 1990), and a garden with a swimming pool now fills the circle where the track ran. Source Conflicting

💡 4 things to know

  1. Designed for a dealership
    The city of Buenos Aires says Palanti designed the building in 1927 for the Resta dealership, which sold Chrysler cars. Source Source Checked
  2. A banked circle on the roof
    Palermo Tour and Wikipedia describe a circular, banked test track on the roof terrace, known as Estadio Olimpo. Source Source Checked
  3. Seats for a crowd
    Palermo Tour says the track had grandstands for 3,000 spectators, and Jalopnik also gives about 3,000. Source Source Checked
  4. Army, museum, lofts
    The army’s Arsenal Command later occupied the building, which the city says was auctioned in the 1990s; Palermo Tour and Wikipedia date its conversion into luxury lofts to 1994, while Jalopnik gives 1990. Source Source Source Source Conflicting

📍 Where it is

Avenida Figueroa Alcorta 3351, filling a whole block in Palermo Chico, Buenos Aires. Source Source Checked

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🗓️ Sightings

  1. 201128 Jan

    Jalopnik: track converted into a pool

  2. 201324 Jun

    City of Buenos Aires tells its history

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

✅ The facts

Architect
Mario Palanti Source Source Source Checked
Designed
1927 Source Source Checked
Opened
1 December 1928 Source Source Checked
Track
Estadio Olimpo, a circular banked test track on the roof terrace Source Source Checked
Location
Avenida Figueroa Alcorta 3351, Buenos Aires Source Source Checked
Today
Palacio Alcorta luxury lofts, with a garden and pool inside the old circle; converted in 1994 (Palermo Tour, Wikipedia) or 1990 (Jalopnik) Source Source Source Conflicting

🔗 Related

All sources & image credits

Last checked: 9 November 2026. How we verify art