The dispute over Gazprom's skyscraper symbolizes Putin's Russia

St. Petersburg - The intention of the Russian gas monopoly Gazprom to build a skyscraper in historic St. Petersburg is a vivid example of how power and influence operate in Russia under Vladimir Putin, writes Reuters.
    The world's largest gas producer, the Russian state gas monopoly Gazprom, wants to construct a 320-meter high glass and concrete skyscraper near the city center of St. Petersburg, which has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.
    Opponents argue that the building will ruin the picturesque panorama of canals and baroque palaces. However, it is not just about aesthetics. The campaign against the skyscraper could become one of the largest public rebellions in the seven-year period of Putin's rule - a period when mass dissent is rarely heard. The fact that St. Petersburg is Putin's hometown adds spice to the dispute.
    At an anti-Kremlin rally in St. Petersburg in March attended by around 2000 people, there were nearly as many signs protesting the destruction of the city's architectural heritage as there were denouncing governmental repression.
    The campaign has been joined by representatives of typically placid cultural institutions - including people like the director of the famous St. Petersburg museum Hermitage, Mikhail Piotrovsky.
    Critics of the plan say it reflects many shortcomings of Putin's Russia: state corporations that wield nearly unlimited power, and a bureaucratic machinery serving the Kremlin, often deaf to public opinion.
    "People are protesting because they feel that the authorities have no intention of considering their opinions," says political scientist Vladimir Vasiliev. "Nothing that Gazprom and the St. Petersburg authorities have done in the past has encountered strong resistance. So they began to think that everything they do is right and that they can do whatever they please."
    Supporters of the project, including St. Petersburg Governor Valentina Matviyenko, argue that it is part of the urgently needed revival of St. Petersburg and that it will breathe new life into a significantly dilapidated part of the city.
    "We made the skyscraper tall so that it looks harmonious and beautiful. It could be smaller, but that would be ugly," declares Alexander Dybal, vice president of Gazpromneft, Gazprom's oil subsidiary, who plans to establish headquarters in the skyscraper.
    Critics point out that the new building will stand directly across from the Smolny Cathedral, which was built in the 18th century by the Italian architect Francesco Bartolomeo Rastrelli.
    "This is not architecture," says Oleg Jonissjan from the St. Petersburg office for cultural heritage protection. "Architecture means that the building must fit into the environment. That tower could stand in the steppe or in Malaysia, but not close to Rastrelli's creation."
    Matviyenko's office has stated that it has not yet given official approval for the construction of the skyscraper, but many are convinced that it is only a matter of time.
    The land has already been transferred to Gazprom along with approval for unspecified construction. And Matviyenko sat next to Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller at a presentation where the winning design for the skyscraper was showcased.
    There were no official public consultations about the building. The opposition party Yabloko is demanding a referendum, but the local legislative assembly, controlled by Matviyenko's supporters, continually postpones decisions on a popular vote.
    "They know they will lose," says Yabloko's St. Petersburg leader Maxim Reznik. "Referendum does not fit into the authoritarian model. In their opinion, it is not up to the people to decide; they consider the people to be the dregs, all decisions are for the nobility."
    The way the Russian state hierarchy functions gives Gazprom considerable influence. Since the reform proposed by Putin in 2004, which abolished direct elections for regional leaders, governors like Matviyenko are accountable to the Kremlin, not to voters. And the Kremlin is connected to Gazprom. The Russian state holds a 51 percent equity stake in it, and Dmitry Medvedev, the former head of the Kremlin administration and now the first deputy prime minister, is the chairman of Gazprom, whom some consider a possible future president.
    On the poster of the protest campaign against the skyscraper, a monster resembling Godzilla, dressed in a Gazprom-branded t-shirt, looms over the Smolny Cathedral. Matviyenko, depicted as a member of the Komsomol, the youth organization of the communist party, salutes. The caption on the poster reads: "Gazprom said: 'It must be done!' The Komsomol responded: 'Yes, sir!'"