Reconstruction project for Cond district is again in the process of discussion. For many times this project has been taken out from the archive, pointing at the importance of maintaining tints and historical environment of old Yerevan in Cond. Cond is one of the oldest districts of Yerevan preserved since the 17th century. And the older is the district, the more are the problems, accumulating for decades. Yet there is no comprehensive solution for construction of Cond district on the general plan of Yerevan city. The famous Russian-born Armenian architect Alexander Tamanyan, who prepared the first general plan of Yerevan, did not plan to rebuild Kond at all; he imagined a green zone there, but the hill was left out of the main construction of those years because of its location. In 1984-85 the government seriously considered the construction problem of the district, which is located in the center and at the same time is cut off from the city downtown. Then a tender of architectural design projects for Cond reconstruction had been announced. The winner of the tender was Arshavir Aghekyan’s design project, according to which a residential zone along Saryan, Leo and Paronyan streets was planned with backyard terraces and green roofs. In the middle of Cond hill about 5 ha area was allocated for a public center where the renovated houses would have studios, workshops, craftsmanship workshops, display and sales halls. In northern part of Dvin hotel it was planned to have a tourist center. But the project was not realized because of the Spitak earthquake and following events. Arshavir Aghekyan finds the reconstruction of this district very important, mentioning, “The project aims to create a collective image of folk architecture, based on the medieval spirit of Cond’s spontaneous construction, scale and space planning. This problem is even more urgent in Yerevan, a city with an impressive historical past, but having no real evidence”. Cond has a great potential in the development of tourism by its place and history, providing wide range of interesting ideas. Many famous European cities rebuilt their old historic districts, making them very attractive for tourism development. Cond too must be linked to the city center, making it the active part of capital city's vibrant daily life and taking into account peculiarities of the district and its environment by harmonious reconstruction of the old and the new and the complex solution of residents’ problems. Cond reconstruction negotiations are underway now, and only after that the design phase will start. What will be decided and how it will be implemented is still unknown. Anyway, the problem is urgent, and thousands of Cond inhabitants are waiting for improvement of their living conditions at least during the governance of current authorities. The next article about Cond, we hope, will tell about the implementation phase of the project.

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 Tumo Center for Creative Technologies aims to make available creative technology trainings for as many young people in Armenia as possible, so that anyone who is fond of learning can attend the nearest Tumo center. Very soon some new centers will open in Koghb, Masis and Gyumri. Head of Tumo Communication Division Lilit Tovmasyan reveals the main requirements that Tumo staff presents to the architects cooperating with the company, «It is very important for us, that the area reflects all 4 components of the Tumo educational model: transparency, selectiveness, flexibility, availability. The building should have very large corridors and halls, high ceilings. The classrooms in Tumo centers are mostly glazed, so that the young people while learning could see what their friends are doing in another classroom. And if they are still self-studying, they will see that other young people taking part in the training, and they will become motivated. » The famous Lebanese architect Bernard Khoury is the one who best understands Tumo's requirements and mission. He is well-known for his modernistic projects and the rich experience in reconstruction of historic buildings. He designed the interior of the very first building of Tumo Yerevan in 2011. And now the centers in Koghb, Masis and Gyumri are being built. As Bernard Khoury said in one of his interviews, «We do not follow the recognizable aesthetic. Tumo is first of all an idea, a spirit that should be kept wherever we move, regardless of building or location. » Tumo center in village Koghb in Tavush province is for 600-1000 people. The young people will be able to attend the center from Koghb, Noyemberyan, Berdavan and other nearby settlements. The center will have hi-tech classrooms, training stations, recording studio, cinema and a large stadium. The Tumo center in Masis is designed for 1000 people. It will be located near the North-South highway for convenience of teenagers arriving from Armavir province. The third building that is being built (or better to say, reconstructed) by Bernard Khoury’s design, is the building of the first theater in Gyumri. This exceptional building-monument included in «Kumayri» historical and cultural reserve is in emergency state and needs serious reconstruction. Tumo in Gyumri now functions in Technopark, but as soon as the building is ready, it will move to new location. The construction of engineering and applied sciences complex in collaboration with European Union and Tumo will start in spring 2020 and is planned to complete the next 2-3 years. 15.000 m2 area adjacent to Tumo was allocated for the new building in Yerevan, and there it is planned to build a 25,000 square meter complex (total). An international tender has been announced for the architectural design of the future complex. The jury is led by Hashim Sarkis, the Dean of the Architecture and Design Department at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Coordinator of the Venice Biennale in 2020. Three giants of architecture have already been selected: RCR Arquitectes, BIG and MVRDV. One of them will be selected in September and will design the EU Tumo complex.

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.

The design project of craft brewery plant Darget belongs to architectural studio Storaket. That was a very interesting and responsible challenge for the studio to design the first enterprise for the production of craft beer. For these purposes Storaket specialists studied international progressive experience in designing high quality breweries. The customer specified the task: the brewery must have a restaurant and a garden. As a result, the plant was designed and built as a complex of two separate buildings, the plant and the restaurant, which also includes a beer garden. The plant structure is metallic. Steel frames hold wall sandwich panels, the roof, and in some places on the second floor, also the reinforced concrete coating. Both the plant and the restaurant have the second, mezzanine floor. The sizes of the brewery plant are 21х80m (2050 square meters). It is a single-storey building, the height of which does not exceed 9.5 meters. There is a 6-meter mezzanine floor in the plant building, designed for office. The main sizes of the restaurant are 17х32m (760 square meters). It is a single-storey building of the same size as the plant and with mezzanine floor. Darget craft brewery is located on Sevan highway, 9 km away from Yerevan. It occupies 3.500m2 area. Unlike other plants the brewery is not fenced. Anyone who wishes to attend the factory can enter the building. Besides, the facade of the craft beer factory is made of glass, which makes it possible to observe the whole process of beer production. The plant and the resturant are separated from each other by a long and narrow glazed corridor, from where visitors can also watch the process of brewing. The glazed corridor leads to the beer garden and open cafe (685m2). Behind the factory and in front of it there are parking lots.