Tatarstan starts to design infrastructure of observation tower
What will appear on the territory of the tower
Tatarstan started to work on the construction of a new observation tower. The Tatarstan Main Investment and Construction Office ordered a project on the construction of infrastructure and landscaping around it for nearly 12 million rubles. The contractor who hasn’t yet been chosen will have four months for this. In June, the office must have the ready plan.
The facility will be located on the Sokolka Mount in Verkhny Uslon District, which has a view of all Kazan. The total area of land for the construction is 18,1 hectares.
A visit centre on an area of 100 square metres for excursions, three observation decks for 62 seats, an amphitheatre, a cafe for 20 seats, WC are going to be built there. The tower will have driveways, parking and park site for camper vans will be created. Networks will also be laid, it is electrical supply, communication, water supply and sewerage.
A decree of the Tatarstan Cabinet of Ministers as of 30 December 2021 is the foundation or the design of the facility. By the way, the document is absent on the website of the republic’s legal information. Final technical and economic figures must be spelt out in the project and approved by the Tatarstan State Committee for Tourism.
The federal and regional budgets are indicated as the source of financing for the tower’s construction. The definite cost of the construction must also be written in the documentation.
Project will be implemented within Tourism and Hospitality Industry national project
The construction of the tower was approved in late December 2021 at a meeting of the Tatarstan Investment Council chaired by Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov.
“The observation tower with landscaping around the facility will be on the Sokolka Mount in Verkhny Uslon District. The area of the construction will be 6,000 square metres, with further improvement of 50 hectares around the facility,” said a representative of Falcon Development.
The investments in the construction of the observation tower 30 metres high will be 50 million rubles. The project will be implemented within Tourism and Hospitality Industry national project.
Tubatay Tower’s construction assessed at 300-350 million rubles
It should be reminded that Tatarstan wants to build another observation tower — Tubatay Tower. Head of the Tatarstan Investment Development Agency Taliya Minullina presented the concept three years ago. It was assumed that investments would total 300-350 million rubles.
The tower itself will have a Tatar national hat tubatay on top, restaurants, souvenir stores and an observation deck on an area of 120 square metres on the perimeter of the “hat” were planned. According to Minullina, the Kazan authorities, State Committee for Tourism and the architecture community of Kazan State Construction and Architecture University approved it.
“Nowadays we don’t have an observation tower in Kazan. Of course, some hotels have observation decks, but we don’t yet have an observation tower like many countries do,” she said.
Businessman Rashid Gabdullin planned to build the tower. In a talk with Realnoe Vremya in July 2020, he disclosed the details of the project:
“Talking about Tubatay Tower in general, we discussed public and private partnership. We closely work with Mrs Minullina and her team to reduce the burden on Kazan’s budget when it comes to the maintenance of the public territory when the project will be launched. Here some compromise is needed because it is not smart and aesthetic to place attractions in a public space. We understand it well. At the same time, cafes and attractions general money flow. Here a sensible balance between aesthetics, functions and commercial component must be followed.”
Tower changed its location several times
To start with, some 100-metre-high tower was to be located in Kazan. An area next to Ak Bars Arena was named as the most probable site.
“The Kremlin must be seen, everything must fit in well, together with the city, architects we are considering where to place such a facility,” Minullina said.
But in August 2020, the authorities refused the idea of building Tubatay Tower near the stadium because a national park will be situated in that area. Approximately at the same time Minullina claimed that a suitable place for the tower was looked for.
“We cannot yet find a solution everybody will be happy with. But the investor doesn’t refuse this project. I think we will make some decision with the mayor soon,” she added.
A year later, the head of TIDA claimed though there was no news the issue was still open.
“You won’t believe. We recently held a meeting of Kazan’s urban council. And new sites were offered there. Our long-suffering potential investor arrived again, had a look. And now he chose the parcel he was offered, near the new zoon. And he seems to have approved it, I am afraid to jinx. If we implement this project, it will be great, of course, if we finally have such a tower,” she claimed.