The Ministry of Culture commented on the situation with the demolition of a 200-year-old building in Kyiv

This is what the acting the Minister of Culture and Information Policy, Rostislav Karandeyev, said in the telethon "Edyny Novyni".

He confirmed that the owner of the building had submitted documents for consideration to the Ministry of Culture. The office determined that the building at this address does not have the status of a historic monument, has not been classified as a newly discovered cultural heritage site, and does not have the status of a valuable historic site.

“At most, it has not even been listed as a significant or ordinary historical building. These are registers kept by the city authorities,” Karandeyev said.

He emphasized that even the historical and architectural reference plan approved by the city authorities does not contain any restrictions on this building.

Karandeev noted that MKIP employees had no legal basis for refusing to approve this project, since the refusal would be considered unlawful and could be verified by the client in court.

“There is one point I pay attention to, including law enforcement. The fact that the design documents that were indicated for the reconstruction of this facility did not indicate its demolition. And indeed, we see that the house is gone. That is, if we approach it from this side and examine the legality of the developers' actions, it will be possible to find some violations and establish a dialogue in the legal field,” he believes.

According to him, from 1.5 to 2 thousand similar buildings do not have a conservation status, but are located in a historic building zone.

Why historical building in Kyiv will be demolished?

The house in Podolia, which is an example of Kyiv's 19th-century wooden housing, was demolished on August 10. Then the residents called the police.

The owner of the manor, Serhiy Bojarchukov, said that the Ministry of Culture had approved the reconstruction of the building. There he was told that the building had no "historical value". Boyarchukov also added that the property is not entered in the register of architectural monuments.

Vitaly Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, said that the authorities of the capital had not issued any permits or approvals for the demolition of a more than 200-year-old building in Podolia.

Klitschko initiated the termination of the lease agreement (since 2009) at Jaroslawska 13-B by the Kyiv City Council, as the private owner acted independently. He added that the city authorities are preparing an appeal to law enforcement agencies to verify the legality of the owner's actions.

In addition, the mayor initiated a decision by the Kyiv City Council to prohibit reconstruction and other activities with municipal buildings that are more than 100 years old, regardless of whether the building is registered or not.

The Cultural Heritage Protection Department of KMDA informed that the building does not have the status of a monument. The scientific design documentation for the construction at this address has also not been submitted for approval. On-site inspectors recorded the dismantling and called law enforcement.