Press Release, 11.09.2020

Yabloko leader Nikolai Rybakov sent an appeal to Russian President Vladimir Putin in connection with the critical situation with the protection of the cultural and architectural heritage – the wooden architecture of Tomsk.

Rybakov recalled that, despite the presidential instruction of February 20, 2019 to the administration of the Tomsk region on the protection of cultural heritage objects, the boundaries of the territory of the historical settlement of Tomsk that has to be protected were not approved. The head of Yabloko also noted that the Tomsk activists of the All-Russian Society for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments (VOOPIiK) are concerned about the fact that the project submitted for approval did not include many significant objects, while allowing for construction of high-rise buildings in the historical centre was also increased.

“I believe it is necessary to develop a special federal programme for the preservation of the architecture of the historical settlement of federal significance, the city of Tomsk, and prior to the adoption of this programme – to allocate funds from the federal budget for the conservation of crumbling monuments,” Nikolai Rybakov urged.

He also noted that he considered it expedient to hold in Tomsk a special meeting of the Council for Culture and Arts under the President of the Russian Federation with the participation of the President so that to consider the issues related to the preservation of Russian architectural monuments. “Delay in solving this problem means losing this unique historical object. This should not be allowed,” Nikolai Rybakov emphasised.

It should be noted that Yabloko leader Nikolai Rybakov, Ivan Bolshakov, Deputy Chairman of the party, and Maxim Kruglov, head of the Yabloko faction in the Moscow City Duma, also raised this topic during their visit to Tomsk on September 9. In particular, the issues of preserving the cultural and architectural heritage of Tomsk were discussed at a meeting with Sergei Panov, Chairman of the Tomsk City Duma, as well as during a round table with the participation of Maria Bokova, head of the Tomsk branch of VOOPIiK.