The architectural monument known as “Flowers of Ukraine” is not in Kyiv anymore.
The District Administrative Court of Kyiv has canceled the order of the Ministry of Culture and the Department for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of the Kyiv City State Administration, which put the Flowers of Ukraine pavilion in the register of monuments to prevent its destruction or rebuilding, according to EP.
The court ruling from December 2 says this.
The court ruling states to deem as illegal and cancel order No. 801/6.11.6 from July 13, 2021 issued by the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine to halt construction work at the property “Reconstruction of an integral property complex with a superstructure for accommodating an office center with underground parking on the street. Sich Streltsy, 49 in the Shevchenkovsky district of Kyiv”;
It also declares order No. 46 dated July 29, 2021 from the Department of Cultural Heritage Protection as illegal and canceled;
The court ruling further says to acknowledge as illegal and cancel order No. 625 from the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy dated August 06, 2021.
The NGO “Preserve Flowers of Ukraine” explains that the OASK court cancelled the status because “the building is from the Soviet Union era, the developer's project matches European standards, the Ministry of Culture and DOKS are in conflict with private business, and the decision to grant the status is incompetent and biased.”
The OO says that “OASK correctly decided that Flowers are “an object of Soviet times, in a state that does not add aesthetic beauty and value to the historical appearance of Kyiv”.
This means that “Flowers of Ukraine” is no longer a monument, it is not protected, and the developer is no longer bound by the Ministry of Culture's order to halt construction work, according to the NGO “Preserve Flowers of Ukraine”.
The community organization adds, “A few steps – and he can return to his fantasy of a glass office building again.”
The NGO’s position reveals, “The consideration took place very quickly and according to a simplified procedure, so the case participants were not even informed. We only found out because we were following.”
The public organization urges the Ministry of Culture and the Department for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of the Kyiv City State Administration to appeal and express their official position regarding these events.
Recall:
In August 2021, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy included the Flowers of Ukraine building in Kyiv in the register of state monuments, which prohibits its destruction or reconstruction.
In July, they began to demolish the modernist facade of the educational pavilion “Flowers of Ukraine” in the center of Kyiv on Sichovykh Streltsy Street.
Following this, the Shevchenkovsky District Court of Kyiv prohibited the owner of the “Flowers of Ukraine” building from dismantling it while a litigation on violation of the architect's non-property copyrights is ongoing.
In early August, the Department of Cultural Heritage Protection, by its order, added the Flowers of Ukraine building to the list of cultural heritage sites in Kyiv.
