An abandoned Idea

The abandoned Idea nightclub, once described as the most over-engineered bilboard in Ibiza.

The abandoned shell of the Idea nightclub dominated the skyline of San Antonio bay for more than 24 years. Most people wouldn't even recognise the name of the place but tell them that it was a half finished nightclub on Avinguida Dr Fleming near Es Paradis most of them would remember the abandoned skeletal steel framework that lay neglected in a prime position only a minutes walk from the beach for more than two decades.

After the demolition.

The club was one of the many failed ventures of controversial Catalan businessman Xavier Cabeu who died alone in his rural Puig den Valls villa in August 2007. Cabeu was born in 1954 and arrived in Ibiza as a child, as a young man he inherited his father's hotel business and used the proceeds to fund diverse business ventures across the island.

Cabeu had several run-ins with the authorities across the island, he served a 5 month stretch in jail for stabbing two Colombian tourists and a case that he violently and sexually abused his wife and two of his thirteen children was thrown out of court for lack of evidence despite the fact a policeman had offered to destroy the evidence against him in return for 3 million pesetas.

Construction of the Idea nightclub began in 1985 but the project was abandoned in 1987 as Cabeu decided to pursue other ventures across the island from Santa Eulària to Cala Tarida. At the time of his death Cabeu was working on plans to complete the Idea.

The local council finally gained approval to demolish the structure in April 2011 despite the objections of the Cabeu family and demolition commenced on 20 April. The local council paid the cost of the demolition (estimated at €39,000) and took control of the land in order to reuse it as a free carpark for 300 vehicles.