Acquaintance with St. Petersburg: Constitution Square

The Constitution Square exists not only in St. Petersburg, but also in huge Mexico City and small Luxembourg, Ukrainian Kharkov, Kiev, Donetsk and Spanish Cádiz, Girona, Malaga, Polish Warsaw and Greek Athens, in Rostov-on-Don, Kostroma, Irkutsk, Tver and many other cities of the world.

Adoption of the basic law is an important moment for any state, therefore it is clear that such events are widely reflected in the urban toponymy. The Constitution Square in St. Petersburg is relatively young. It was formed by the beginning of the sixties of the last century in the place where the Krasnoputilkovskaya street meets and two avenues - Leninsky and Novoizmaylovsky. In those days, the square was unofficially called Round. It is believed that the rounded end of traffic interchanges can reduce the risk of emergency situations at intersections. A little later, the square was christened Novoizmaylovskaya (in honor of the eponymous prospectus).

It received its modern name a year after the adoption in October 1977 of the last Soviet constitution - Brezhnevskaya. III The Constitution of the USSR, which consolidated all the achievements of developed socialism, determined the life of the country for almost 15 years. Then the Soviet Union broke up, the new state needed new laws, which immediately appeared. The name remains the same, although some indigenous Petersburgers believe that it should be concretized - "Area of the Constitution of 1977".

Today, the square is a convenient transport interchange, but motorists complain about permanent traffic jams and the lack of convenient parking. There are a number of interesting objects on the square. The building of the St. Petersburg Youth House with a glass facade attracts attention.

Earlier here was the legendary cinema "Meridian". Typical cinemas appeared in the USSR in the 1950-60's together with the construction of new residential areas. The first series of such buildings was not very successful: plain-looking boxes (such as "Youth" and "Sputnik") did not please the look. And in 1963 there was a second standard project of large-format cinemas, developed by a group of architects under the direction of Viktor Belov. In total, in the city in the 1965-70s, 11 such buildings were erected, the first of which was the Maxim cinema. All buildings have a glazed facade, curved like a screen. If before there was a theatrical portal in cinemas, now the screen has taken its place in the whole wall. The acoustics and general aesthetics of the auditorium have improved.

Today, all these 11 standard cinemas are either dismantled, or rebuilt for new theatrical and concert halls, as well as the famous "Meridian". By the way, the name of the cinema was due to the fact that it was not far from the famous Pulkovo meridian (it was mistakenly thought that the building stands directly on its line). Show films in the "Meridian" ceased in the 90's. The building was occupied by the Leather Trade Center, badly damaged in the fire in 2004, after which the building was transferred to the Committee for Youth Policy under the government of St. Petersburg, rebuilt and reconstructed.

Every fifth inhabitant of the city is a representative of youth aged from 14 to 30 years. Because the committee has a lot of work. They supervise talented youth, engage in patriotic upbringing, organize leisure for young citizens, including through modern forms: flash mobs, projects, actions, quests; Implement a variety of student programs. The building has a concert hall for 700 people, in which there are numerous concerts, festivals, competitions, awards ceremonies.

From the south and west sides, the Constitution Square is balanced by two similar 8-storey buildings, designed by the architect GL Badalyan. The buildings of the 1970s and 1980s may seem boring, but the business here has been truly large-scale. In one building there were several design institutes of the Ministry of Ferrous Metallurgy, in the other - also the design institutes of the USSR State Construction Committee. It was here, in these facilities of the Soviet model, projects of the largest metallurgical plants and mining enterprises were born.

At the address of Constitution Square, 7 is a modern building, which turned this area of the city into an office building. In 2007, the "Leader-Group" project bureau developed and implemented the construction of the tallest building in St. Petersburg - a 140-meter-high skyscraper (40 floors). The Business Center "Leader Tower" is decorated with a tower resembling high-rise buildings in the United Arab Emirates, where light ads are shown around the clock. This is the most modern highlight in Russia. In the building "Leader-Tower" there is a place for beauty salons and restaurants, gyms and offices. A high-speed elevator delivers visitors to the 40th floor, where an observation deck is located, from where you can enjoy the view of Northern Venice from a bird's eye view.

Thus, the Constitution Square (St. Petersburg) has come a long way from the pompous Soviet square to the modern business center of the cultural capital of Russia. Here you can not only work, but also relax, and have a bite at many cafes and restaurants.