ArmInfo. The collapse of the wall of the building of the children's philharmonic society at Arami Str. 23, is symbolic because it was the result of unorganized work. This opinion is shared by chief architect of Yerevan, Arthur Meschyan, as quoted by the press service of the Yerevan municipality.
According to the source, the chief architect recalls that over the past three months, there has only been talk of the need to strengthen the building, projects have been submitted, which were rejected by the RA Ministry of Culture. "Thank God that there are no human victims, the wall can be restored and the old value returned to the building. This case should be a lesson so that buildings under construction are erected in such a way that there is no similar story. – said the chief architect, expressing hope for the earliest possible decision-making by the Ministry of Culture of the country in whose jurisdiction the building is located.
Arthur Meschyan assured that a new project will be developed together with the architect of the Old Yerevan project, and the objects being built next to the monument will not have a negative impact on him. The first one, which was developed by the architect of the "Old Yerevan" project, was rejected by the Ministry of Culture and the town planning committee as a result of the discussions, since it was considered dangerous to the integrity of the building. The second and third projects developed by engineers and specialists of the Ministry of Emergency Situations also did not receive approval of the department. Currently, a fourth project has been developed, for which the investor has declared his readiness to finance it. The building, built in the 90s of the 18th century, is in the register of protected monuments of the Ministry of Culture of Armenia, but this status, as in the case of other architectural monuments, does not save it from the threat of destruction. The building is conducted by world-famous children's choir "Little Singers of Armenia". On the possibility of building collapse testified and examination of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
As parents of students and school staff told the ArmInfo correspondent, everything began with the construction directly next to the architectural monument of the next elite building. According to the teachers, the contractors carrying out construction work violated all conceivable and inconceivable construction norms, as a result of which the foundation of the old building began to settle, and deep cracks formed on the walls.
The project "Old Yerevan" covers about 100,000 square meters of construction in the center of Yerevan – from Abovyan Street to Koghbatsi Street, from Arami Street to Buzand Street. According to the project, it is planned to restore the architectural appearance of the Armenian capital of the late XIX – early XX centuries. It was assumed that the project "Old Yerevan" worth $ 150 million was to be completed in 2010-2011. However, the government entered into an agreement with Multicontinental distribution only in 2014 due to some problems. Construction work started only in 2017.