Introduction
Welcome to the tour, everyone! Cozy up around so you can all hear me.
We’re going to start off with a fact today – did you all know that 13% of Moscow’s territory is taken up by industrial zones?
The city was built in rings with the centre as the administrative hub and all industrial activities on the periphery. In the last two decades, the city underwent extreme deindustrialization and there have been many efforts to redevelop the now-abandoned Soviet industrial zones. In particular, the goal is to “deconcentrate the centre and create a multifunctional urban plan,” according to Moscow chief architect, Sergei Kuznetsov (Luhn). There are a number of reasons behind these redevelopments:
- The deindustrialization leaves behind a lot of abandoned buildings that are not only eyesores but can also become the site of illicit activities.
- The city is expanding outwards and the industrial zone happens to be on the outer periphery of the traditional city limits. Developing these areas allows for the city to continue to grow while maintaining its density.
- There is a lot of demand for versatile spaces, especially for artists and other creative agents looking for office, retail, and gallery spaces.
Map of Moscow Tour of Post-Industrial Spaces
Today we will be traveling by coach bus. Although it would be my preference to travel via subway so we could immerse ourselves a little bit deeper into the culture, the sites we are visiting tend to be quite spread out and hard to reach by public transit. In fact, these zones are notorious for their poorly maintained roads, lack of transit, and general abandonment. The deputy mayor for urban development and construction, Marat Khusnullin, claims that “they aren’t paying much in taxes, so it’s a wasteland and a burden on city” (Luhn). The city is indeed spending a lot of money on revitalizing these regions. They are currently repurposing the Moscow Ring Railway for public use at a cost of 100 billion roubles (Luhn). This old railroad connected the rust belt factories and has been out of use for awhile. After the repurposing, it will accommodate public transit and make these regions much more accessible.
Luckily, much of the revitalization in Moscow’s decommissioned industrial zones has been driven by the private sector. Today we will be visiting five sites that were previously industrial. They were all converted between 2000 and now, and all of the conversions follow a distinctive style. They have been converted to accommodate artists and other creative entrepreneurs with gallery, office, and retail spaces. Often, there are also restaurant, café, bar, and nightclub spaces alongside. Essentially, the converted spaces have all become emblems of a high-flying lifestyle, where the affluent can come and enjoy art, fashion, and fine dining and drinks. These spaces resemble many other post-industrial converts around the world.
Has anyone here been to the Distillery District in Toronto, converted from old breweries? How about the Old Rainier Brewery in Seattle? A few other examples include SoWa in Boston, which is converted from an old power station, as well as two parks in Taipei: Songshan Cultural Park, an old tobacco factory, and Huashan 1914 Creative Park, an abandoned winery. Can anyone else think of an example of a post-industrial site?