How will houses in Moscow be demolished?

A draft amendment was introduced to the State Duma that would regulate the demolition of several thousand Moscow houses (mostly five-story buildings), the construction of new ones and the resettlement of 1.6 million residents. In short, the essence is approximately this: the authorities decided that it was more profitable to demolish all five-story buildings and move people into new houses than to spend money on major repairs. This is a program of colossal scale, so now they have decided to change the legislation in such a way as to simplify bureaucratic procedures as much as possible and protect against litigation with tenants. According to the authorities, this will allow the program to be completed in a reasonable time.

No, not only that. You need to understand that we are not talking about the demolition of individual houses, but about the “renovation of territories.” In these territories, not only five-story buildings will be demolished, but also houses “similar in design characteristics.” Obviously, this means neighborhoods where five-story buildings are adjacent to nine-story buildings of a similar design. The city hall promises to publish a list of series of houses for demolition in the near future.

To new homes. The authorities claim that they will build modern houses “fully finished”, which will be energy efficient, allow for internal redevelopment and are suitable for people with limited mobility. According to the authors of the bill, the market value of apartments in such buildings will increase significantly compared to old ones. The apartments will be no less than the old ones. The authors of the bill argue in an explanatory note that in most cases it will turn out that new apartments will be even larger than the old ones - simply because they no longer build such small kitchens and other common areas. Those who are in line to improve their living conditions must receive apartments with an area of ​​at least 18 square meters per person upon relocation - such standards are established in Moscow.

It is assumed that the resettlement will be within the same area or to a neighboring one. But those who live in the Central, Zelenogradsky, Troitsky or Novomoskovsky administrative districts can be resettled further, but within the district.

This is unknown. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin says that they will resettle “only those neighborhoods where the majority of citizens say: ‘Yes, we want, yes, this is necessary.’” According to him, residents will vote using the “Active Citizen” (the transparency of this application raised many questions ) and “My Documents” services.

If the majority of residents agree, the rest, in fact, will no longer be able to refuse relocation. All residents will be asked to sign relocation contracts, and if anyone fails to do so within two months, the city will take legal action. The court may allow the tenant to be forced to move. Moreover, even if such a tenant makes counterclaims to the city and tries to challenge the legality of the demolition of the house, this will not delay the process of forced relocation.

This is unknown. But judging by the explanatory note, the authorities expect that the construction of new houses will not take much more than two years. For this purpose, amendments are being made to the legislation, which, in particular, will greatly simplify the procedures associated with the preparation of technical documentation.

They won't return it. The mayor's office has already announced that this money will be used for the renovation program. Residents of houses designated for demolition will be exempt from contributions for major repairs.

We don’t know for sure, but it’s hard to doubt it: it’s no coincidence that Sobyanin received approval for this bill from Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting in February - the position of the head of state was specifically mentioned in the explanatory note. According to RBC sources in the State Duma, the bill will not only be adopted, but they will also try to do it before the fall of 2017.

Alexander Borzenko