Hundreds sign petition to keep Samovarov bathhouse from municipal takeover in Chita

Several hundred people have left signatures and contact details under an appeal to city and regional authorities requesting the extension of the lease agreement for the use of the Samovarov bathhouse on Petrovskaya Street in Chita between LLC MirSaun and the municipal budgetary institution «Banno-Prachechny Trest» (Bath and Laundry Trust). A copy of the appeal, which has been sent to various recipients, is available to the editorial office of Chita.Ru.

It was previously reported that residents of Chita are signing an appeal to the city Committee for Property Management and the Bath and Laundry Trust with a request to preserve the lease of the Samovarov bath complex on Petrovskaya Street with the current tenant.

The appeal states that LLC MirSaun used the bath complex at Petrovskaya, 15 for eight years under a lease agreement with the Bath and Laundry Trust. Modern washing halls, steam rooms, relaxation areas, an outdoor pool, and a food service point were equipped.

«As far as we know, the Bath and Laundry Trust is unprofitable, and the city annually pays it subsidies. And we understand that the bathhouse at Petrovskaya, 15 will turn into the same unprofitable enterprise,» the appeal says.

Attached to it is a notification from the MBU of the city district «City of Chita» «Bath and Laundry Trust» to the management of LLC MirSaun, which states that the lease agreement ceases to be effective from January 20, 2026. Therefore, the tenant is obliged to vacate the property within three days from the date of expiration of the agreement.

The appeal, signed by citizens, has been sent to the governor of Zabaykalsky Krai Alexander Osipov, the mayor of Chita Inna Shcheglova, State Duma deputy Andrey Gurulev, the director of the Bath and Laundry Trust Nadezhda Smolyanskaya, and the acting head of the property management committee of the Chita administration Oksana Pimenova.

The editorial office of Chita.Ru on January 27 sent an official inquiry to the mayor of Chita Inna Shcheglova requesting to comment on the current situation around the bathhouse at Petrovskaya Street, 15. Including to explain why the municipal organization refused to extend the lease agreement.

According to the Kontur.Fokus system, the municipal enterprise «Bath and Laundry Trust», owned by the Chita administration, ceased its operations in 2024. And from December of the same year, the municipal budgetary institution of the city district «City of Chita» «Bath and Laundry Trust» appeared. It is managed by Nadezhda Smolyanskaya. For 2024, the enterprise recorded revenue of 45.3 million rubles (approximately $503,300 at current rates), and net profit was 947 thousand rubles (approximately $10,500 at current rates).

LLC MirSaun was established in 2016. It is managed and owned by Svetlana Sokolova. Revenue for 2024 was 14.6 million rubles (approximately $162,200 at current rates), and net profit was 1.8 million rubles (approximately $20,000 at current rates).

Meanwhile, in December 2025, LLC MirSaun filed a lawsuit in the Arbitration Court of Zabaykalsky Krai against the Bath and Laundry Trust to compel the defendant to reduce the amount of rental payments taking into account the actually occupied area. This concerns the period from January 19, 2021 to January 19, 2026. And to recover the amount of unjust enrichment of about 5.1 million rubles (approximately $56,700 at current rates). The lawsuit will begin to be considered in February.

At the same time, according to Chita.Ru, LLC ignored the notification from the Bath and Laundry Trust about the obligation to vacate the premises after the lease expires. A representative of the initiative group that was collecting signatures also confirmed to a Chita.Ru correspondent that LLC MirSaun has not yet vacated the premises, as legal proceedings have begun. More information the editorial office plans to obtain from the mayor«s office response to the official inquiry.