Gogol Library, Unsold for 1 Ruble, to Be Returned to Primorye

The building of the former Gogol Library at 119 Svetlanskaya Street is planned to be removed from the privatization list to preserve its heritage. Authorities have decided to restore the rotting architectural monument. It previously could not be sold for one ruble.

According to Vl.ru, at a meeting of the Primorye Krai Legislative Assembly«s committee on economic policy and property, the issue of removing the Merchant Zharikov House from the list of objects to be privatized was considered. It is a cultural heritage site of regional significance, which authorities believe is important to keep in public ownership.

Currently, the building is hidden behind a false facade: inside, it is covered in mold, beams have rotted, and walls have cracked. We previously showed what it looks like in a photo report.

The building area is 922.4 square meters, and the land plot is 686 square meters. The plot can be leased after purchase and is not included in the cost. Not everyone is willing to take on the restoration work. The cost of work could reach 200 million rubles (about $2.2 million at current rates), which is a serious investment that not just anyone is ready to make.

In a conversation with VLADIVOSTOK1.RU, Yevgeny Zakharov, head of a construction company from Khabarovsk, explained that the reconstruction price will depend on the project and timelines.

«We need not only to repair it inside but also preserve the monument»s exterior appearance. Such work is long-term. Clients usually aren«t ready to wait a long time. But overall, it»s a realistic and feasible task. It was already sold last year, but to be honest, I wouldn«t take it on. It»s too old and dilapidated; it requires significant resources, the ability to collaborate with contractors, or at least 15–20 people dedicated to this one project. I definitely won«t have that many. So, you»d have to close all other projects and focus solely on restoring this building,« the interlocutor said.

Last year, the Agency for the Use and Preservation of Property signed a lease agreement with Aurora-Stroy DV LLC. The company was supposed to restore the building, but in January 2024, it asked to terminate the contract. Now authorities plan to sell the building for use as a store, business center, apart-hotel, or beauty salon. The new owner will be required to restore the building within seven years.

Until 2020, the library building was illegally owned by Rose LLC, which acquired it in 2007 at a reduced price. In 2009, regional authorities went to court demanding that the deal be declared invalid. Only after ten years of litigation was the library returned to the ownership of Primorye Krai, but by then it was in a deplorable state.

The building, once belonging to the Gogol Library, was erected in 1906. In 1912, it was transferred to the city to house the city library. However, the city duma allocated extremely meager funds for the library«s maintenance, forcing it to rely mainly on private donations. As a result, the library remained small.

In May 1908, the newspaper «Dalekaya Okraina» wrote: «Such poverty of the library collection as observed in the city library named after N.V. Gogol is hard to find even in a backwater district town. The library subscribes to only nine copies of newspapers, and even fewer journals. Moreover, publications from nearby regions are absent. It is surprising that such a state of affairs is possible in such a rich port city as Vladivostok.»