The planned Gazprom skyscraper faces criticism

Moscow - The Russian gas monopoly Gazprom apparently does not have the construction of a massive skyscraper in St. Petersburg as certain as it seemed after local authorities, led by St. Petersburg Governor Valentina Matviyenko, gave the green light to the project.
    Culture Minister Alexander Avdeyev sent complaints from heritage conservationists to the prosecutor's office regarding the actions of the St. Petersburg city hall, thousands of people protested in the city over the Neva River without the police dispersing the demonstration, and now even state television has dared to criticize the proposed new landmark of St. Petersburg.
    "It will be a cross between Venice and Singapore," stated the report on First Channel, which typically does not show anything that might displease the Kremlin. However, the television rejected Governor Matviyenko's assurances that the massive tower would not be visible from the city center at all.
    Subordinates of Governor Matviyenko, known for her absolute loyalty to St. Petersburg native, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, reportedly marvel - until the last moment they believed that the governor was promoting the skyscraper in accordance with the will of the highest leadership.
    Gazprom had a report broadcast on its television extolling the project. Criticism also accompanied the construction of the St. Isaac's Cathedral, of which the city is now proud. And in the newspaper Izvestiya, a full-page appeal appeared to President Dmitry Medvedev, urging him to advocate for a construction that "will create jobs for thousands of people" and "ensure a new quality of life" in the president's hometown.
    According to political scientist Mikhail Vinogradov, the report on state television likely indicates rare disagreements within the leadership that could cancel or revise the project. "The authorities have understood that the project is dangerous not only for Matviyenko but for the entire system," concluded Maxim Reznik, who leads the opposition Yabloko party in St. Petersburg, in The Moscow Times.
    The glass, concrete, and steel tower, resembling a gas flame in shape, is set to rise 403 meters high near the city center on the Neva River from 2016. The construction will cost about 60 billion rubles (approximately 34 billion CZK).
    According to critics, the building will irreparably damage the unique atmosphere of the city, often referred to as the "Venice of the North." The city could even be removed from the UNESCO World Heritage list because of the skyscraper.
    Nevertheless, the governor pushed through an exception for Gazprom's project from regulations that prohibit buildings taller than one hundred meters to avoid disrupting the exceptional historical panorama. According to her, the skyscraper "will be a masterpiece of architecture that future generations will be proud of."
    But in the meantime, nationalist leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky sensed a change in mood and withdrew his previous support for the project. "If the majority of people are against it, the Liberal Democratic Party is with the majority," he declared. And the chairman of the upper house of parliament, Sergei Mironov of the smaller pro-Kremlin party Fair Russia, called the project "mad."
    According to an early October survey by the government center VCIOM, fewer than a quarter of St. Petersburg residents support the skyscraper, while more than half are opposed, and a fifth are undecided.