One of the main topics for the architectural media this week is predictably the results of the competition for the draft concept for the development of the Moscow agglomeration. The projects of all nine teams participating in this competition are analyzed in detail by Bolshoi Gorod magazine, Moskovskaya Perspektiva and Vedomosti newspapers, and The Village portal. Afisha magazine compiled a detailed guide to the solutions proposed by the teams, and also published an interview with one of the winners - French urban planner Antoine Grumbach. RIAN Real Estate, in turn, talked about the results of the competition with its Russian leader - architect Andrey Chernikhov. Jean Pistre also spoke very interestingly and versatile about the problems of modern Moscow and the prospects for its development - an interview with this architect was published by Gazeta.ru.
The chief architect of the capital Sergei Kuznetsov, who gave an interview to Komsomolskaya Pravda, also spoke about how Moscow can and should change in the near future. The conversation touched upon the reconstruction of landmark objects (for example, the Dynamo stadium), the development of new Moscow territories, the problems of improving the capital's embankments and the attraction of foreign architects to Moscow. In the same week, Sergei Kuznetsov gave his first television interview (to the Dozhd TV channel) as the chief architect of the capital.
And the magazine "Interview Russia" published a shorthand record of the discussion between architects Sergei Sitar and Yuri Grigoryan, which took place at the Strelka Institute. When discussing modern architecture, designers began by defining what architecture is in today's context.
Petersburg will face large-scale transformations. By the end of this year, the city authorities will approve a program for the preservation of the historic center. However, as noted by "Karpovka.net", this plan will be made public after the main officials of the city put their signatures on it. In the next six years, it is planned to spend about 220 billion rubles on the reconstruction of the famous St. Petersburg districts, and private investors will allocate half of them. But the reconstruction of the St. Petersburg Conservatory will take about two years and will cost the federal budget 2.8 billion rubles, according to RIA Novosti.
The Village has prepared an overview of websites dedicated to civic initiatives that help make Moscow a more enjoyable place to live. Restoring historic facades, repairing roads and getting rid of traffic jams are just some of the points in the programs of caring citizens. The most interesting thing is that all these initiatives exist exclusively on donations. And Interfax tells about the initiative of Boris Pasternak, the chief architect of the Center for Historical and Urban Planning Research, who proposes to create an open people's encyclopedia of Moscow houses, which would combine both scientific information and stories about the inhabitants of these buildings.
The material prepared by RIA Novosti as part of the Social Navigator project is devoted to the attitude of Moscow residents to the parks and squares of their native city. The publication not only compiled a national rating of Moscow's Culture and Leisure Parks, but also interviewed experts on how to improve the green corners of the city. For example, Alexander Vysokovsky, dean of the Higher School of Urbanism at the Higher School of Economics, believes that today the most promising path for the development of parks in Moscow is saturation of the urban environment with many small recreation areas, about a hectare in size. "These parks should be located near residential areas, within walking distance of public transport stops and contain elements of improvement, if not for everyone, then at least for the main groups of visitors," Vysokovsky quoted the publication. In a narrower and more applied aspect, landscape designer Anna Andreeva talks about Moscow parks, who told The Village about which flower beds are relevant today and whether the capital's gardens can be restored.
While residents of the capital are debating about creation, other cities are arguing about preserving heritage. In Pushkin, several architectural monuments are at risk of being demolished: the Canobbio house on Leontyevskaya Street, the Petrovskys (Moskvins) house on Malaya Street, the Tsarskoye Selo palace house on Malaya Street … And this is not the entire list that Karpovka.net will publish. A loud conflict is also flaring up in St. Petersburg - this time around the house on Millionnaya Street, built according to the project of Quarenghi. Now the construction of an attic is underway in it, and the Dzerzhinsky District Court continues to consider the case on the claims of the administration on the recognition of this construction as illegal. According to Novaya Gazeta SPb, a criminal case has already been initiated, officials go to the site with checks and issue orders, but construction continues as if nothing had happened.
