Photo: Mikhail Ognev /
The auction for the sale of the complex of buildings of the former Kresty detention center on Arsenalnaya Embankment may take place in July 2024, Delovoy Peterburg reported on April 8. So far, “Home.The Russian Federation is determined with the initial cost and prepares the tender documentation, Fontanka recalled the experience of its closest neighbors: the twin of the St. Petersburg Crosses in Helsinki has been operating as a boutique hotel for 16 years.
Discussions about the redevelopment of Krestov have been going on for seven years — since the pre-trial detention center moved out of the historical buildings on Arsenalnaya Embankment. At first, the FSIN itself tried to look for an investor, but the business was not interested in a complex object. Five years later, at SPIEF 2022, they decided to entrust the choice of new owners for the Crosses to DOM.RF Corporation. But the auction has not yet been announced.
An attractive location is offset by the poor condition of the buildings, coupled with strict security obligations. Not only two “cruciform building complexes” and the church of St. Alexander Nevsky have the status of a monument here, but also everything that is not late Soviet, namely baths, a glacier, a hospital for the infected, a kitchen, houses for wardens — all these are identified objects of cultural heritage.
Experts suggest that businesses be inspired by the Finnish example and draw a multifunctional complex with art spaces and a hotel on the site of the former pre-trial detention center. But, judging by the experience of neighbors, the owner will have to prepare for dumping, and the investor for an increase in project costs and a leapfrog of management companies.
What are the famous Finnish “Crosses”?
The construction of the prison in the Katajanokka district in Helsinki began under Nicholas I. When the need for expansion arose at the end of the 19th century, three new wings were added to the building, as a result of which the complex took the shape of a cross. The St. Petersburg Crosses were built according to the same model and at about the same time.
The Helsinki prison was mainly intended for the detention of tax evaders, and was also used as a detention center. The charm of the location is added by the fact that 12 Finnish ministers were sitting there in different years, in the post-war period the most famous prisoner was the former head of state Risto Ryti, convicted of links with Nazi Germany.
In total, the Finnish “Crosses” had 160 chambers of about 7 sq. m. For its time, it was an advanced structure: there was electric lighting in all rooms, and the central heating system worked. However, there was no shower and toilet in the cells, which by the middle of the 20th century ceased to meet European standards. In addition, the prison stopped coping with the number of prisoners, and the location in the city center made escaping from it not so difficult: in the 1990s, one of the prisoners escaped by simply making a rope out of sheets and blankets. In 2002, the Katajanokka prison was closed and the prisoners were moved to a new building in Vantaa.
Author: youtube.com/hotelkatajanokka
Historical heritage
The fate of the former prison was decided by the Finnish authorities for four years. The debate was about both the cost and the future purpose. According to preliminary estimates, the initial price of the object was supposed to be from 5 to 7 million euros, about the same amount the investor was offered to invest in repairs.
Senaatti-Kinteistöt, a state-owned company that rents premises for Finnish government agencies, was commissioned to organize the auction. Initially, it was planned to give a new life to the prison already in 2005. But the process was delayed. While the authorities were conducting surveys and negotiations with potential investors, the building was transferred to a temporary refugee detention center. He was finally released only in 2004.
In the same year, a territory plan was adopted to protect the historical appearance of the buildings of the XIX — early XX century. In particular, the facade and stairs had to remain intact. The status of the prison chapel was separately stipulated: its hall could only be used for church services. So the investor had to adapt the building for modern use without disturbing its appearance. In addition, the land inside the walls was to be transferred to the City of Helsinki for a park.
Concept Competition
Finnish scouts applied for the purchase of Katajanokki prison, who offered to convert it into a youth center and lease it to various youth organizations. The Sovinto Association wanted to use the building as a college for troubled teenagers, but part of the area was going to be given over to a hotel and restaurant. The project of a “women’s business center” was also proposed, which could house a jewelry workshop, a hairdresser, a beauty salon, a gift shop, a sewing workshop, a stationery store and an art gallery.
But in the end, the hotel project won, which was undertaken by the Hotelli Katajanokka Oy company, owned by a group of private investors. Among them was the event marketing agency. In the autumn of 2005, investors bought out the prison building for 2.65 million euros — half the originally designated lower limit. In 2006, the Helsinki Building Council issued a permit for reconstruction. The Finnish Museum Department Museovirasto supported the project.
Entrepreneurs have preserved the central hall of the prison as a single space. The chapel was promised to be rented out for weddings. And one of the cells was turned into a museum. The new air conditioning system was installed in such a way as to preserve the appearance of the ceilings of the corridors and rooms. The wall surrounding the prison also remained in place, but entrances for vehicles and pedestrian passageways were made in it. The prison yard has become a public space for city residents and hotel guests. Investments in reconstruction also turned out to be more than initially expected and amounted to about 11 million euros.
Author: youtube.com/hotelkatajanokka
A difficult business
The first director of the Katajanokka Hotel, Heimo Kyahti, joked that the layout of the prison with cells on the sides of the corridor is ideal for adapting to a hotel. “Now we are continuing the same tradition, but a little bit with other customers,” Yle quoted him as saying.
In total, the hotel has 106 rooms, converted from 167 cells. They were decorated in a modern northern design. Photographs of prison life remind us of the past. The Jailyard Restaurant, decorated in the style of a prison canteen, serves food and drinks in aluminum bowls and glasses. However, one of the former prisoners told the Finnish media that the cutlery offered to the guests is very different from what was actually used in prison. Prison-themed souvenirs are offered at the reception, and a prison cell preserved in its original form is offered to rent, for example, for bachelor parties.
The hotel positions itself as a four-star hotel. A night in a double room next weekend will cost 140 euros. Among the advantages is the Katajanokka district itself, where the Art Nouveau architecture is adjacent to the cruise ship terminal and Ferris wheel, and the city center is easily accessible by tram. However, visitors complain about poor Internet due to thick walls and not too varied breakfast. And the prison atmosphere does not attract everyone.
Author: youtube.com/hotelkatajanokka
On its website, the hotel announces the receipt of various “tourist Oscars”. But from a business point of view, the project cannot be called easy. The financial results of the hotel have not been published, but the frequent change of operators may indirectly indicate this. So, initially, developers considered the Omena network for this role. But as a result, the Best Western chain began to manage the hotel, which opened in 2007. In 2016, Hotel Katajanokka became an independent boutique hotel, and then became part of Marriott Hotels&Resorts.
But the Finnish “Crosses” gave an impetus to the redevelopment of the area: after the prison, warehouse and industrial buildings began to be turned into hotels and apartments.
Galina Boyarkova,
Photo: Mikhail Ognev /
Источник: www.fontanka.ru
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