Vadym Iermolaiev gave a second life to an ancient building in Dnipro city

In 1793, the city’s first industrial enterprise – a cloth factory – appeared on the map of Katerynoslav (modern Dnipro city, Ukraine). The realities of that time, the war, the government did not spare the building.

There was a food warehouse, a military hospital, an orphanage, a museum and much more. In 1926, attention was again drawn to the premises and it was repurposed into the city’s first bakery, which operated until the 1990s, and was later liquidated.

It was this appointment that remained in the memory of several generations of Dnipro residents. Thus, a unique building preserved the history of the city for centuries and rightfully became an architectural monument of national importance.

Over time, interest to the factory was completely lost. It was declined, the unique facade was crumbling, talks about reconstruction were just talks, and the projects remained on paper. Thus, a unique but shabby building stood on the modern Dmytro Yavornytskyi Avenue.

This lasted until 2019. Then the Alef Estate Company decides to bring back to life such an important historical building for Dnipro city. The famous investor and developer Vadym Iermolaiev became the inspiration and initiator of the project for the reconstruction and restoration of the Katerynoslav cloth factory.

“Today the preservation of cultural heritage is a pressing issue all over the world. And this is especially important for Dnipro, because our city has its own unique architectural face. And these are not only modern buildings, but also sights. All of them have historical value. But some of them are destroyed, or are in a terrible neglected state.

There are enough reasons for this: imperfect legislation, bureaucratic red tape, lack of motivational mechanisms for investors. All this is a reproach to us, contemporaries, who do not know how to preserve and appreciate history. I love Dnipro and I want the city to be valuable both for its modern architecture and preserved monuments,” said Vadym Iermolaiev.

The restoration of the cloth factory was preceded by serious research. The project team conducted numerous expert consultations with historians and scientists, studied archival documents, bibliographic and field data. Thus, in the course of the restoration, the foundations were strengthened, walls were moved, windows, doors and the roof were replaced, and the facade was restored.

Renovations affected not only the factory building. The entire quarter in the area of Dmytro Yavornytskyi Avenue, Pastera and Pryvokzalna Streets and Staromostova Square has changed beyond recognition. Now there are modern sidewalks and parking pockets, flower beds and young trees. Traditionally Alef Estate has paid special attention to lighting.

“The building of the Katerynoslav cloth factory belongs to the style of high classicism. This is an outstanding object for Dnipro. Therefore, it was important for me personally to pay attention to details. So, we decided to emphasize the venerable age of the building with the help of lighting. The lighting elements were arranged in such a way as to show the historical irregularities of the facade, to demonstrate to ordinary passers-by that the cloth factory is a unique artifact, and not an imitation of a 19^th century building.

And we succeeded! And now, when the difficult works are behind, when extraordinary efforts have been made, I want the residents of Dnipro and the city’s guests to love this peripheral area as much as they already love Katerynoslavskyi Boulevard. I am proud that in 2023 the cloth factory was able to meet its next anniversary. And already with a new purpose and in a new form,” – Vadym Iermolaiev noted.

No matter how difficult it may be in modern realities, it is not the first time that Alef Estate has taken responsibility for the restoration of historical buildings. For example, in Dnipro at 7 Hlinka Street only the facade of the ancient building from the beginning of the 20^th century remained. Probably, it would meet a sad fate and it would add to the disappointing statistics of destroyed monuments.

But Vadym Iermolaiev decided to invest in the reproduction of the historical building. After these words the grandiose work of finding masters, selecting materials, paints and colors was next. Now it is the “Pryzma” trade and business center.

“Troyitsky” residential complex, which is located at the intersection of Troiitska and Starokozatska streets, also became a sophisticated combination of history and modernity. This tenement building was built back in 1913 and also belongs to the architectural monuments. As a result of the restoration, specialists managed to achieve the main goal – to restore the unique facade.

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