History
The building on Makarova embankment boasts a history of over 170 years. In 1843, a two-story merchant house was built on the site, which was then rented to water haulers and used as a lumberyard to store construction materials.
In the years ahead, the building was used as a private home for wealthy individuals - it was considered prestigious to live on the riverbank - until it was purchased by Y. Petrov, a builder who expanded the structure to stand 6 stories tall, and to have an inner courtyard. In 1914, a section of the ground floor was refurbished into a 150-seat cinema, with a public meeting hall, a stage, and a foyer.
In the years that followed, the building housed an editorial office of a newspaper, an applied botany bureau, before it finally returned to being an apartment building. In August 2002, a decision was made to undertake a detailed reconstruction of the building, even restoring the original bas-reliefs. This reconstruction was completed in 2008, and the building has served the city as a hotel ever since.
