The new 2.7 km Argavand - Shirak highway construction is planned to be completed in 21 months. «The new road is of strategic importance for Yerevan and Armenia. Today we have four bridges in the capital, and the fifth will be built on Hrazdan River as part of the program. The road will greatly ease the traffic in the capital», - said the mayor of Yerevan signing the bilateral memoranda on construction of the highway. The municipality informed us that within the framework of the investment program on sustainable urban development financed by the Asian Development Bank, the new highway will have 4-6 lanes, the average width of which is 24-28 meters. The project includes 252 meters long and 28 meters wide bridge construction across Hrazdan River, as well as the construction of a single lane at the intersection of Isakov and Babajanyan streets. During construction works all the transport routes will be substituted. It should be noted, that the road Argavand-Shirak is part of the western ring road of Yerevan, connecting also the administrative districts Malatia-Sebastia and Shengavit. Luis Lopez Moloni, the official representative of Spanish company Levantina Inchenieria Costrucio noted, that their staff has a large experience to implement such projects, and ensured, that the works will be finished in due course. According to the project, a new bridge over Hrazdan River will be built from metal structures and will be equipped with a water and oil separator, which will prevent the pollution of the river. The project is being implemented taking into account that the road is located in the historical and cultural district of Karmir Blur, where during the archaeological excavations some ancient tombs were discovered. It is noteworthy, that the archeological monument Karmir Blur was one of the biggest administrative centers of the ancient kingdom of Urartu, the city of Teishebaini.

Although Armenia occupies relatively small territory, there are about 26000 cultural and historical monuments located there. That is, about 1 square kilometer accounts for one historical monument, and this is a great opportunity for development of tourism in the region. The problem is that we do not take full advantage of this opportunity, since almost 80 percent of our historical heritage is in distress, in a dilapidated condition. And if something is being restored, then it is mainly the churches and mainly with private funds, but not the fortresses, caravanserais and other worldly buildings and structures. However, there are happy exceptions, as, for example, in the case of the cave fortress complex Zarni-Parni. The cave fortress of the X century Zarni-Parni is helpless before the destructive power of the time. It would have remained just a name in the list of cultural and historical monuments, but then benefactor Ruben Mesropyan decided to restore it. A group of architects headed by Stepan Nalbandyan prepared the design of the fortress recovery. To date, the first lower fortress-cave of Zarni with an area of 605 square meters has been completely restored. In the cave you can see a museum with ancient household items of the Lori region from the personal collection of R. Mesropyan and ponds where water accumulates from the cliff. A recently built staircase leads to the upper cave Parni. This is a successful experience, which should become a good example of restoration and use of cultural and historical monuments. Stepan Nalbandyan is the vice-president of the Armenian Association of Architects in charge of historical monuments, and the Director of the Armenian branch of the international charity organization "Country and Culture". Within the framework of these two organizations, many restoration works are carried out annually, and mainly churches are being restored. This year the restoration works are pending for the following monuments: the 5th century one nave basilica church Saint Hripsime in Verishen village, Syunik province, Surb Astvacacin church (XVII century) in Lernadzor, Saint Hripsime in Srashen (XVII century) and a V century church in Mirak, Aragatsotn province. The monastery complex of Surb Hovhannes in Meghri has already been consecrated and hosts the believers. This year the restoration and improvement works have finally started in monastery complex Sanahin. It is already 8 years the restoration of the monastery-desert complex Tandzaparakh continues with the help of philanthropists and volunteers of the Armenian branch of the international charity organization “Country and Culture”. The desert is located in 5,5km from Bekh district of Kapan city. Stepan Nalbandyan noted that unfortunately there is very little restoration work implemented within the framework of state projects, and what is being done is often of poor quality and unsuitable for working on such a thin and fragile material. Meanwhile, these monuments are our visit cards in the world of tourism, and their competent restoration is one of the keys to the development of this industry.

Day after day many residential buildings are being built in Yerevan, which, nevertheless, do not look inhabited, because many people buy new apartments as investment in real estate. Yet, dozens of Armenian families still live in unsafe buildings. Today we will talk about the project implemented by the construction company Nobby Ltd, the representatives of which are trying to solve the abovementioned problem. It is about the construction of residential buildings at 8/1 Arzumanyan street in Ajapnyak administrative district. The residents of the adjacent emergency buildings appealed to Nobby Ltd with a request to provide an apartment in the new building. At what stage are these agreements and under what conditions will these apartments be allocated to them? “With the residents of the emergency building, we came to an agreement about the allocation of apartments in the new residential building. These apartments will be completely renovated and adapted to the needs of residents, the emergency building will be demolished and a park will be built in its place”, told us the representatives of Nobby and added, that the park will be pretty large and convenient. In fact, it is one of the few projects in the area where landscaping is included. The whole project consists of construction of 5 residential buildings (the first one pending and will be finished at the end of 2020). According to the plan, the 12-storey building will have 120 apartments (39 m², 55 m², 58 m² and 76.9 m²), as well as an underground garage and a playground. According to the project, it is planned to build four more buildings: two 16-storey and two 18-storey - a total of 220 apartments and 100 parking spaces.

The reconstruction project of the 18th century mill building is of great interest not only for the population of town Metsamor in Armenia, but also for professionals. The reconstruction is carried out in the framework of the IRTD program “Integrated development of agricultural tourism”. The program is really interesting because it is planned to restore the historical and cultural value. The implementation of this project is extremely important, given the fact that in the IV-II centuries B.C. Metsamor was an important cultural center (this is evidenced by the excavations of the ancient fortress), and after reconstruction not only the building will be restored, but the city as a whole will acquire a new look. The project is implemented by the architectural studio Ghulyan Architects. According to architect Musheg Ghulyan, «After reconstruction the building will serve to museum visitors, contributing to the development of archaeological tourism in Armenia. The visitors will be able to explore the original building of the mill, get acquainted with practical archaeology in interactive mode, learn the history of the ancient settlements of Armavir, and then they will be able to relax in the recreation area». There is no any historical data about Metsamor mill. It is assumed that the mill was built in parallel with the construction of the reservoir or immediately thereafter, i.e. after 1730-1732, and functioned until about 1930. After the reconstruction of the 1950s, it served as the historical and archaeological museum of Metsamor until the construction of the main building.

Yerevan Municipality plans to start the program of reconstruction and modernization of the Victory Park, turning it into a park of the 21st century, with profuse thematic and stylistic solutions. The idea is undoubtedly very interesting, especially considering the fact, that it is based on the history, traditions and legends of Armenia. The park will be designed for all age groups, combining elements of leisure, entertainment and recreation. One of the distinguishing features of Victory Park will be the use of interactive learning components of the 21st century. As a result, all visitors of the park will have access to information systems. The project will be implemented with private investments. Yerevan Municipality will assist the investor in providing information on the legal status of land plots, in obtaining the necessary documentation for the project, will consider the possibility and conditions of preferential payment for land use. The construction works will last 3 years; the project cost will be about 60 mln US Dollars. The main task of the project is to make the park modern, while maintaining the main elements of the former Victory Park. And though the park needs reconstruction, it has nevertheless formed its own architectural image. Ultimately, in large cities the spirit of different times should be felt, the collective image of which reflects the mood of the city, especially if this place is dedicated to some significant event. Let us recall, that famous architects Rafael Israyelyan, Hovhannes Hakobyan, Ashot Alexanyan, Anahit Navasardyan and the sculptor Ara Harutyunyan contributed to the creation of Victory Park by building the unique symbols: Alley of Heroes, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Aragil Restaurant, Lake Arevik and Mother Armenia. It is noteworthy, that Victory Park already has its own ideology, therefore the park does not need ideas, it needs reconstruction, reconstitution of felled trees, overhaul of Aragil restaurant and renovation of the existing amusement rides. We are not against the project implementation, on the contrary, it has plenty of interesting ideas and solutions, and since the program is at the initial stage, it may be worthwhile to consider building a park in one of the suburbs or micro-districts of the capital. This approach will not only contribute to the uniform development of the city, but will also give an opportunity to further expand the park areas, equipping them with new amusement rides. Let us recall, that the construction works of the Victory Park began back in the 1930s, and the park was then called ''Arabkir City Park '', after it was renamed to Victory, and for many years since then the trees were planted on its desolate lands. The Memorial of Victory Park was opened on 29th of November, 1950. The total area of the park is 34 ha. Let’s hope, that the city officials will follow this example, and another desert land clot will be planted with trees.