Ruins of the Union Club in Old Town, once the most elegant and exclusive club in the country. Built at the end of the peninsula in 1917, it fell on hard times, as did the rest of Casco Viejo ("Old Town"), when the elites moved to other parts of the city in the 1930s. Gen. Manuel Noriega gave it new life in the 1980s as the Club de Classes y Tropas (Club of Classes and Troops) where he threw lavish parties for his officers and cronies. The Club was a bombing target during the U.S. invasion in 1989 and it has been little more than a shell since -- although it has been used for band practice, an events space, a skateboarding arena and a film location. Scenes from both "The Tailor of Panama" and "Quantum of Solace" were shot here.
An American hotel group has announced plans for a $40-million, 160-room hotel on the site.