The company will build a residential apartment complex on the territory of the Electric Transport Museum

According to Kommersant's information, Moscow-based Glorax Development (part of Glorax Capital), owned on a parity basis by businessmen Andrei Birzhin and Valentin Chernysh, intends to invest in the modernization of the museum of urban electric transport on Sredny Prospekt Vasilievsky Island, 77. Several years ago, a project to create a the site of the Palace of Arts by the Hungarian investor TriGranit was closed by the city administration. According to the new project, Glorax Development is going to build a complex of residential apartments and a hotel next to the museum complex. Costs for these facilities could reach 7 billion rubles. During the implementation of the project, Vasilyevsky Island will be left without a new transport depot, which would help improve the transport situation on the island.

It is planned to build all the facilities on the territory of the former tram depot within a year and a half. At the same time, the developer expects to receive strategic status for his project, which will allow the investor to provide a plot of land for construction for a specific purpose, that is, bypassing bidding
Photo: Alexander Petrosyan, Kommersant / buy photo

Last Friday, the Moscow company Glorax Development, which recently announced its readiness to complete the problematic projects of shared construction behind the PSM-Classic company in St. Petersburg, presented to Vice-Governor Igor Albin a project for the comprehensive reconstruction and development of the territory of the former Vasileostrovsky tram park on Sredny Prospekt, 77, which Now it functions only as a museum.

The Vasileostrovsky tram depot began operating in 1907. It was from here that the first St. Petersburg tram departed. The site was closed in 2007. A little later, the government of Valentina Matvienko presented a project to build a Palace of Arts here, the investor was the Hungarian group TriGranit. Subsequently, Governor Georgy Poltavchenko froze this project.

As the meeting participants told Kommersant, the project provides for the reconstruction of the existing museum of city electric transport. In particular, it is planned to modernize three carriage sheds, which are objects of cultural heritage of regional importance, and build another additional hall. The investor intends to adapt the boiler room of the former tram park for a special exhibition. “The developer is relying on the museum as an exhibition site - that is, he plans to rent out space to restorers and owners of vintage cars. The possibility of creating a car repair shop and a service station for vintage cars is also being considered,” said a source familiar with the project. Now the museum exhibition is located only in the first pavilion. Gorelektrotrans intends to use the second depot to release trams on the line during the entire period of reconstruction of the Tuchkov Bridge.

In fact, the museum complex occupies about 3.5 hectares of the 7.7 hectares of land leased from the State Unitary Enterprise "Gorelektrotrans" until 2025. On the remaining territory, Glorax Development plans to build 14 eight-story residential apartment complexes, as well as a hotel and underground parking. The investor plans to use the first floors for offices and retail. Investments in the project will amount to 7 billion rubles. Glorax Capital told Kommersant that they are not yet ready to comment on this project. General Director of Glorax Development Alexey Balykin did not respond to the publication’s request.

It is planned to build all the facilities in 1.5 years. At the same time, the developer expects to receive strategic status for his project, which will allow the investor to provide a plot of land for construction for a specific purpose, that is, bypassing bidding. According to Colliers International, the cost of land here can reach 15 thousand rubles per sq. m. m of future sellable space.

The Investment Committee noted that the project concept will be approved only if it fully complies with the socio-economic development strategy of the Vasileostrovsky district. “The main commercial component of the project, namely the creation of a hotel and apartments, will be kept to a minimum and will not become the dominant feature of the project,” added committee chairman Irina Babyuk.

At the same time, for several years now, plans have been discussed in Smolny to restore the main function of the tram park, in particular, to build a joint depot for buses from the State Unitary Enterprise Passazhiravtotrans and trolleybuses from the State Unitary Enterprise Gorelektrotrans. The new transport base was supposed to be located exactly on the site where Glorax Development plans to build apartments. Meanwhile, Kommersant's interlocutors note that the territory of the former tram park No. 2 is actually the only one on Vasilyevsky Island where a transport depot could be located: the island is remote from all main transport bases, so drivers have to spend up to an hour and a half to overtake bus to the beginning of the route from the areas of the Komendantsky airfield, Kupchino or Avtovo.

Tatiana Dyatel

Glorax will enter the tram park