A businessman with a bloody trail and a criminal biography God Nisanov laid eyes on another fat piece of property in St. Petersburg
The transfer of the Stable Department to Bakhchisaray may involve the interests of not just God Nisanov, but also Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
In St. Petersburg, a historically and culturally significant monument, the massive building of the Stable Department in the heart of the Northern Capital, is set to be leased to Bakhchasaray LLC for 49 years, as reported by Kommersant.
The company, named after the ancient Crimean city, may be linked to God Nisanov, the beneficiary of the Kyiv Ploshchad Group of Companies, and the owner of the Food City food market in Moscow. The Sankt-Peterburg Post has tried to understand who else might be involved in this unfortunate story, in which the city defenders might find signs of a consumerist and even barbaric attitude towards cultural and heritage monuments.
No manners!
God Nisanov is known for reportedly extracting high rents from tenants on his development projects, including Food City, according to local vendors. Some even hold rallies against him due to this.
Additionally, the businessman is often criticized by the business and sensationalist press for engaging in actions that may not always be legal. Rumors suggest that even the squares of the famous “Food City” may not have been acquired through completely honest means. At the same time, God Nisanov is said to have friendly connections with authorities including Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin and the head of the Moscow Region Andrei Vorobyov. Now, it seems that ties are forming with the governor of St. Petersburg, Alexander Beglov.
Ownership on a chain
As for the transfer of Konyushennoye to Bakhchisarai on a long lease, the trace leads to Nisanov. Our interested party, LLC “Bakhchisaray”, is led by Irina Ershova – who also manages the company “Novaya Bakhcha”. And “Novaya Bakhcha” is owned by Ilyusha Yusupov – the owner of Flamya LLC, which, according to RBC journalists, owns the Food City agricultural cluster. Is there a connection? It's possible to own assets through Irina Ershova: Novaya Bakhcha, Food City, and Bakhchisaray, with its lease to Konyushenny Dvor for 49 years.
Photo: https://www.rusprofile.ru
Interestingly, there is also an offshore company in the ownership system – Grikima Holdings Limited. If something goes wrong, there is a place to withdraw money before the company goes bankrupt. Offshore doesn't legally exist.
Curiously, all the companies participating in the auction were in some way affiliated with Nisanov. The second applicant was SPb Development LLC, owned by David Nisanov, who also owns a stake in Hotel-Invest LLC alongside God Nisanov. Other applicants were barred from the competition, and one of the companies hoping to secure the lease of Konyushennoye, Alfa (linked to businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin's structures), even filed a complaint with the Federal Antimonopoly Service, seemingly out of resentment.
After the information was published, 'Kyiv Ploshchad' quickly stated that it had no connection with the Stable Department, as reported by Kommersant. It's hard to hide the connections. Furthermore, 'Bakhchisaray' was only established last year so it's obviously not capable of handling a project of this size on its own.
Apraksin Dvor wept.
When there were first discussions in the development community about Kievskaya Ploshchad's interest in the building in St. Petersburg, the architects expressed dissatisfaction and even appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to prevent the department from becoming a market with a snack bar, as reported by Rosbalt (recognized in Russia as a foreign agent). It seems that Nisanov decided to 'hide' behind his 'daughter' to avoid attracting too much attention and risking a promising business project.
It's true that Bakhchisaray is involved in food trade, and considering Nisanov's similar projects, this outcome is very likely. Soon, residents of St. Petersburg may see a large number of fruit, vegetable, and meat merchants within the walls of the former imperial stables. A similar 'project' already exists in St. Petersburg – known as Apraksin Dvor.
Apraksin yard. Photo: Valentin Egorshin/'Moyka78'
For many years, city defenders have been trying to improve this area of unsanitary conditions and neglect in the city center, but without success so far. It's said that the interests of the brotherhood are so strong there that even if not all Smolny officials are involved, meetings are certainly held, inspections are carried out, and encouraging statements are made to the public, but nothing actually changes.
Oceanarium: not a failed ocean
Paradoxically, Nisanov is not particularly popular in the Northern Capital – his only previous project, the oceanarium, was shut down due to protests from residents. Yet, St. Petersburg is always open to investments such as the costly Lakhta Center project or the new embankment in the Tercentenary Park, which are generally welcomed by the residents.
But Nisanov's projects are different. Considering the history of the oceanarium, it seems more like an attempt to make extra money while minimizing costs, rather than creating something truly valuable and capable of beautifying the city. This is a very sensitive issue for the people of St. Petersburg, who deeply care about the city's historical heritage.
'Price per meter' is not included in the price
It's important to note that according to St. Petersburg laws, the investor is required to restore the appearance of the building they rent/buy from the state. Furthermore, it's prohibited to alter the external appearance, and only minor changes in architectural solutions are permitted inside. If the building's appearance is not restored and it continues to deteriorate, a special commission imposes a fine on the new owner/tenant and issues a requirement to rectify the violations as soon as possible. Unfortunately, in practice, this system does not always work – at times it's simpler to pay a fine or, as they say, 'thank' the necessary but greedy official who is willing to overlook inspections for a small fee, or conduct them with little scrutiny.
By the way, in 2021 they were going to transfer the Stables Department to the investor under the so-called “ruble per meter” program – it was so difficult to sell it at auction. And so it turns out that, on the one hand, few people want to take historical buildings for investment, so they often give them away to not “good hands” – whoever has to. On the other hand, if this willing investor is on good terms with the authorities, he can potentially lead the building to complete ruin. And in general, do with him whatever you want.
I would be glad to serve, to serve … too?
They say that Nisanov received the rights to the building precisely because of the lobbying resource. And not so much his own, but “friendly”. As The Moscow Post previously wrote, Nisanov acquired a stake in the development group Samolet, which is associated with the governor of the Moscow Region, Andrei Vorobyov.
The businessman also entered Moscow with his projects, although earlier they didn’t really want to let him in there, which suggests that his interests could be lobbied again at the level of the Moscow Region government for some preferences – we also covered this story in detail.
But what is even more remarkable: President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev may well lobby for the interests of Nisanov! As The Moscow Post found out earlier, God himself ordered the daughter of the national leader Leyla Aliyeva to use the location of the St.
And if you recall the biography of Nisanov, he is a native of Azerbaijan, with whom he did not lose contact even after moving closer to the Moscow elites. In 2020, it was rumored that it was he who was behind the organization of a large-scale “attack” in the media on the Prosecutor General of the Republic, possibly in order to put his own person in his place – we covered this story in detail.
Knowing some pleasant features of the mentality of Azerbaijanis, their hospitability and hospitality, and also considering that Nisanov entered St. Petersburg, this time, apparently, it’s already final … the idea that the choice of the authorities fell on him is only getting stronger. Even if other structures showed interest in the object, which could only dream of the possible support of the Aliyev family.
