Furious onlooker shares shocking photo of towering structure warping beloved skyline: 'It was so beautiful before this'

A new high-rise development in Melbourne is making waves online — and not the good kind.

A Reddit post has sparked a heated discussion after one user shared a photo of the new tower at St Kilda Junction, now completely wrapped in massive, blindingly bright LED screens. The user wrote: "They've covered the new tower at St Kilda Junction with giant obnoxious video screens for outdoor advertising. How does s*** like this get approved?"

"You think you can just go for a drive without being sold something?" — Photo Credit: Reddit

The image shows a glowing panel of animated ads plastered across real estate, lighting up the night with commercial messages. The visual intrusion prompted a flood of reactions, with many lamenting the shift from scenic cityscape to billboard-laden skyline.

"It was so beautiful before this," one commenter said.

The backlash goes beyond just visual aesthetics. Outdoor advertising of this kind — especially when delivered via giant screens — has been linked to increased light pollution, which can negatively impact human sleep, wildlife behavior, and even energy consumption. Plus, the messaging promotes excessive consumption of products that many people don't need, a cycle that contributes to harmful pollution and overflowing landfills.

"You think you can just go for a drive without being sold something?" one user questioned, frustrated by the growing presence of ads in public spaces. And they're not wrong — research has shown that constant exposure to advertising can lead to more wasteful purchasing habits, which means more stuff gets manufactured, shipped, and eventually tossed out.

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Luckily, there are ways to push back. Cities like São Paulo have banned outdoor billboard advertising altogether. In other places, grassroots groups are taking action, like Adfree Cities in the UK and The Subvertisers' International, which aim to reduce corporate advertising in shared spaces. On a personal level, choosing to shop secondhand through platforms like Buy Nothing groups or resale apps like Depop and Vinted helps reduce demand for the mass production advertised in campaigns like this.

"Look…it's a mini-Times Square," a user lamented. "Reminds me of walking down Wall Street to see the beautiful New York stock exchange building and the whole thing was covered by giant flags advertising a [VPN]," another Redditor added.

Whether you're concerned about pollution or just miss the stars at night, one thing's clear: Our public spaces deserve more thought than flashing ads and bottom lines.

Do you think your city has good air quality?

Definitely 🥰