Volgograd Residents Deny Meter Installers Basement Access
The chair of the building council on Lenin Street demands that pipes be replaced before installing meters. The contractor company claims it is acting within a major repair program.
Jan 25, 2026 0
Sergei Ostrovsky, the chair of the building council, has voiced opposition to the meter installation project.
Source:
In central Volgograd, residents of a historic building known as the House with Swans refused to allow workers into the basement to install communal water meters.
The chair of the building council, Sergei Ostrovsky, stated that he denied access to the installers due to a lack of supporting documents. «I asked them to provide documents confirming that they indeed have a contract, signed acts — they couldn»t provide anything, they refuse. They say: «Everything is with the major repair fund and the management company.» They are installing some unclear meters that don«t even work. We need to replace the pipes, not the meters,» the activist explained.
The management company, LLC «UK CenterVolga,» reported that the company «Intelpribor» is indeed the contractor. Deputy director Inna Zaiko noted that no written request for access to the basement had been received, and the existing cold water meter in the building is not functioning.
The regional capital repair fund confirmed the contract information. A representative of the regional housing and utilities committee pointed out that the building at 19 Lenin Street is included in the program, and a contract worth 370 million rubles (approximately $3.7 million at current rates) has been signed with the contractor. The work to install 952 communal meters should be completed by October 15, 2026.
Data from the RTS-tender portal indicate slightly different conditions. According to it, the total contract price with LLC «IntelPribor» is 413 million 128 thousand 878 rubles (approximately $4.13 million at current rates), and the execution period extends to October 15, 2031. The company is to cover over a thousand addresses.
On the capital repair fund«s website, planned work for this building is listed. From 2026 to 2028, the following are provided:
- installation of collective meters;
- installation of water control units;
- repair of the roof, facade, and basement.
The chief engineer of «Intelpribor,» Vladimir Duntzov, commented on the situation. He acknowledged that such conflicts are not uncommon and explained the need to install modern meters with dispatch systems to monitor actual water consumption.
The company«s foreman, Mikhail Lyakhov, expressed bewilderment at the behavior of the building council chair. He said that he tried to negotiate with Ostrovsky over the phone, but he remained adamant without personal presentation of documents.
As a result, the installation of new meters in the historic building has been postponed for now.
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