The pending question is whether Grand Hotel Sofia will be the next landmark construction to suffer the fate of the former Serdika Hotel, situated in Sofia’s centre and consumed by fire in April 2007.“Heritage At Risk” was the title of the debate held on November 22 at Sofia’s Central Residence of Architects, chaired by prominent architects Yavor Bankov, Lilo Popov and Zdravets Haitov.
Heritage At Risk is a national campaign for the preservation and restoration of Bulgaria’s historical and cultural inheritance.
The recent announcement of BT Development Services’ intention to reshape the capital’s Grand Hotel Sofia was between the number of “violations” of cultural monuments that triggered the initiative.
A number of noted architects and art connoisseur voiced their concerns about the future of Bulgarian landmark constructions and the invasion of real estate investors into big city centres, so destroying their singularity.
“Each old building is unique. It has an aura of its own and conveys the spirit of the era in which it was built. Iron and glass can deliver no message,” told architect Mila Mineva during the discussion.