This Annus Horribilis is thankfully over, making it time for the Annual Golden Brick awards.

Lead Brick to the City Council for requiring living wages for all employees at all stores at the Kingsbridge Armory, apparently due to concerns that the Bronx mall would compete against faraway Fordham Road merchants. As a result, Related Companies dropped the project entirely, paving the way for no wages being paid for no new jobs.

Skyscraping Brick to Emaar Properties for developing the Burj Dubai, which started construction on Sept. 21, 2004 and will open on Jan. 4, 2010, $4.1 billion later, despite the United Arab Emirates’ financial woes. Made of reinforced concrete, the building is twice the height of the Empire State Building, and at well over 800 meters, or 2,625 feet, will stand as the tallest man-made structure in the world.

Broken Brick to the Macklowes, who just can’t get a break. Not only did they lose a portfolio of seven office towers, including Worldwide Plaza and the office portion of 1540 Broadway after being unable to pay back the $7 billion purchase loan, but 1330 Avenue of the Americas was foreclosed on and the loan on the gorgeous but empty new 510 Madison Ave. was sold to SL Green Realty Trust, which will eventually move in for the kill.

Takeover Brick to SL Green. Along with buying the loan at 510 Madison, the company took over 100 Church when the Sapirs couldn’t pay that mortgage.

Family Ties Brick to the Elghanayan brothers, who divided up their portfolio into TF Cornerstone and Rockrose Development when brother Henry wanted to go his own way.

Russian Brick to Bruce Ratner and Forest City Ratner for selling the Nets to a Russian billionaire and closing on the Atlantic Yards purchase despite years of NIMBY lawsuits.

Diamond Brick to Gary Barnett and Extell Development for forging ahead with the Diamond Tower on W. 47th Street and a hotel/condo development on W. 57th Steet.

Best or Worst Investment Bricks to George Comfort & Sons on the purchase of Worldwide Plaza and Youngwoo & Associates’ purchase of the AIG headquarters.

Bunny Hop Brick to Joseph Moinian for dancing his way through a thicket of loans coming due, giving up 417 Fifth Ave., struggling against the waves of Ocean Residences on West Street and debt on 180 Maiden Lane.

Entitlement Brick to Tishman Speyer, which spent a record-setting $5.4 billion on Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, totally oblivious to the fact that tenants of the middle-class enclaves believe they are entitled not to pay more rent and are happy to spend their time filing lawsuits against building owners to see if they can win the golden ring of treble damages.

Green Bricks to the Empire State Building and the Malkins for putting the environment first and challenging their advisers to come up with real numbers for real savings. And to the Durst family for being on the forefront of building green, opening the exquisite Bank of America Tower, and for repainting ugly graffiti on the former Artkraft Strauss Building on West 57th Street with a jungle mural.

Cash Brick to Vornado Realty Trust for amassing $1.8 billion in cash to wait for shopportunities but having to park it in bank accounts paying .25 percent.

Secret Brick to the successful developers of a starchitect-designed residential building who got hammered by a judgment by the courts and the IRS that a tax shelter was illegal. The tax bill amounted to $3 million for one partner, $29 million for another and $25.3 million for the third, who still lives in one of the buildings.

Blue Brick to the James Cameron movie, “Avatar,” a cross-species love story set amidst an intergalactic battle over a tribal home sited on valuable real estate.

Ongoing Biggest Speculative Bet in Midtown Award to SJP Properties for the development of 11 Times Square.

Ongoing Biggest Speculative Bet Downtown Award to Silverstein Properties’ World Trade Center Towers.

Worst Investment of the Year Award to anything that has fi nancing coming due and is highly leveraged.

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