Moscow city authorities on Tuesday finalized a list of apartment buildings in the capital to be demolished under a controversial urban renewal scheme scheduled to roll out over two decades, the state-run TASS news agency reported.
“A total of 5,100 apartments have been included in the renovation program,” TASS cited Moscow’s Mayor Sergei Sobyanin as saying during a meeting of city officials. A full list of buildings due to be demolished was posted to the city hall website, he added.
President Vladimir Putin in February signed-off on Sobyanin’s flagship renovation program, which is estimated to impact 1.6 million Muscovites living in post-war apartment buildings named after the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.
The demolition plans have been met with criticism by many of the city's residents, who took to the streets this spring in a series of mass protests against the mayor’s plans.
As part of the scheme, Moscow authorities will have license to declare whole blocks of buildings “renovation zones,” where existing construction standards and regulations would not apply.
City authorities have said that apartment owners in buildings slated for demolition will be offered new apartments equal in size or market value in the same district. They may also opt for monetary compensation and will be allowed to contest demolition in court.
