Calea Victoriei / Victory Avenue - Renovation & Rehabilitation

[Le Clerk]

WIKI:

History



Initially, the road was named Drumul Braşovului, being part of the trade route between Bucharest and the city of Braşov, in Transylvania.[1]

Between 1692 and 1700, a paved road which linked the centre of Bucharest to the Mogoşoaia Palace of Constantin Brâncoveanu was built and it was named Podul Mogoşoaiei, being made out of oak wood.

Most roads in the Balkans at that time became muddy in the spring and autumn, and the wood prevented this. Consequently the road was one of the most important construction works of the area and a source of pride to Bucharesters. The area surrounding the road became the most fashionable part of Bucharest: 35 boyar houses were located on the road itself in 1775.[2]

Podul Mogoşoaiei was the first street in Bucharest to be illuminated with candles during the night, starting July 1814.[3]

The wood was not a very sturdy material and often it was in a bad state, despite being repaired several times (including in 1793 and 1814). During the Russian occupation of the Danubian Principalities, in the aftermath of the Russo-Turkish War (1828–1829), an extension from Piaţa Victoriei northward was built by Pavel Kiseleff, the commander of the occupation troops, and is today named after him. In 1842 the road was paved with cobblestone. It was later upgraded to asphalt.

The road was renamed "Calea Victoriei" after the Romanian victory in the Independence War of 1877-1878.
CEC Palace, 2006
Cercul Militar Naţional, 2006
The front of the Bucharest Novotel, shown under construction May 2006, replicates the façade of the old National Theatre, damaged in World War II and subsequently demolished.

[edit] Buildings and monuments

Major buildings and monuments along the street include (from north to south):

* George Enescu Museum
* Museum of Art Collections
* Ştirbey Palace
* The Athénée Palace Hotel, now a Hilton
* Romanian Athenaeum
* National Museum of Art of Romania
* The library of the University of Bucharest
* Kretzulescu Church
* Piaţa Revoluţiei (Revolution Square), including the Memorial of Rebirth
* Palatul Telefoanelor
* Odeon Theatre
* Casa Capşa
* Cercul Militar Naţional
* Pasajul Macca-Vilacrosse
* Bucharest Financial Plaza
* National Museum of History of Romania
* Casa de Economii şi Consemnaţiuni (CEC)

It was also long home to the Constantin Tănase Revue Theatre (as of 2006, relocated to the Lipscani district), and was the site of the old Romanian National Theater just north of Palatul Telefoanelor; the departed theatre's façade is replicated by the front of the Bucharest Novotel that opened in summer 2006. The Romanian Athenaeum is set back slightly from the street, with a small park in between.

Calea Victoriei was Bucharest's showpiece street in the Interwar years. Tudor Octavian wrote, "this is how the whole of Bucharest would look if we had been allowed…, if its builders had been clever enough…"[4]. After roughly half a century of decline, it has recently been returning to this role. The National Museum of Art of Romania (the former royal palace) and the University Library across the street from it (both damaged in the 1989 Revolution) were restored in the 1990s; Palatul Telefoanelor was restored 1997–2005; and there has been an ongoing refurbishment of the street's many hotels, including the Athénée Palace, the Majestic, the Capitol, and the Capşa Hotel; as of 2006, the Grand Hotel du Boulevard and the Continental are undergoing remodeling, and a brand new Novotel is due to open in summer 2006.

Some nice old pictures:




Source
And "now and then":



Source

And a map of the area:

[tomis3]

do you get paid by the letter?

[Le Clerk]

Hotel Continental has been going through a massive renovation programme.

Continental Hotel in Bucharest tries to win back its inter-war glory
17 Iunie 2009

Businessman Radu Enache, who controls the Continental hotel chain, which posted 27 million euro revenues last year will open the first five-star hotel of the chain, the Grand Hotel Continental located on Calea Victoriei in Bucharest in August, the Ziarul Financiar daily reports on Tuesday.

[...]

The former four-star Continental on Calea Victoriei was turned into Grand Hotel Continental following refurbishment works.

“Work on the transformation of the hotel started on January 14, 2008, because we had waited for permits for two years since 2006.

We changed all the installations, the ventilation system, everything was redone,” he said.

“Iťs sort of a boutique hotel and I believe the effort to fill 60 rooms will be much lower than filling hundreds of rooms like the other five-star hotels.

[...]

Source

[bgp]

The hotel looks very nice (except the pvc windows, if they are pvc, i can't tell for sure). It's sad to see though the tall, new building in the back, as it was built with no respect to the historical area it is situated in... and I wonder what was on that site before it, what did they demolish. There could have been a nice, continuous front of buildings if it would've had just 7 or 8 floors... now the old building on the corner looks inferior, although it's an impressive monument.

[Le Clerk]

Originally Posted by bgp

The hotel looks very nice (except the pvc windows, if they are pvc, i can't tell for sure). It's sad to see though the tall, new building in the back, as it was built with no respect to the historical area it is situated in... and I wonder what was on that site before it, what did they demolish. There could have been a nice, continuous front of buildings if it would've had just 7 or 8 floors... now the old building on the corner looks inferior, although it's an impressive monument.

I have no clue whether the windows are PVC, though I doubt that.

As to the modern building in the background, it was built on the site of a former old building which did not have any architectonic value. But you are right, ideally they should have preserved the area's architecture and height.

[Du'Myth]

The new building you guys are talking about was built on the former ground of the Excelsior Theatre. I think the name of the building is Excelsior Offices or something.

Nice thread Le Clerk , if only i could get my hands on a decent camera i would doubtlessly try to enrich it a bit, so, its up to you i guess.

[Le Clerk]

Originally Posted by Du'Myth

The new building you guys are talking about was built on the former ground of the Excelsior Theatre. I think the name of the building is Excelsior Offices or something.

Nice thread Le Clerk , if only i could get my hands on a decent camera i would doubtlessly try to enrich it a bit, so, its up to you i guess.

Of course anybody can post pictures here. I think though a certain order has to be followed, like posting buildings which are currently under restauration works, which have announced restauration works or buildings which have just been restored.

[eu.romanian]

calea vict e una din cele mai fumoase zone din buc.din pacate sunt cateva blocuri care arata ca in ferentari si strica tot.stie cineva ceva daca se renoveaza si alea?

[BG_PATRIOT]

Gorgeous buildings...but these fucking wires... In Sofia, it is the same bs, something has to be done. First it is really not safe to have 30+ wires hanging around from one single post and second it is aesthetically as bad as having pealing facades

[Le Clerk]

Originally Posted by BG_PATRIOT

Gorgeous buildings...but these fucking wires... In Sofia, it is the same bs, something has to be done. First it is really not safe to have 30+ wires hanging around from one single post and second it is aesthetically as bad as having pealing facades

Yeah....I am tired mentioning the cables already. They are almost unavoidable in any place in Bucharest. Fortunatelly there is a programme to dig them up and in some areas the cables have already dissapeared.

[Le Clerk]

Wiki

Old building


Source


Source

The August 13, 1843 report of the commission charged with building the theatre determined that construction would cost 20,300 Austrian guilder (standard gold coins, a sum worth about US$45,000 at the time[citation needed]), of which only 13,000 gold coins were available. In 1846, a new commission engaged the Vienese architect A. Hefft, who came up with an acceptable plan.

Construction got under way in 1848, only to be interrupted in June by the Wallachian revolution. In August 1849, after Prince Barbu Dimitrie Ştirbei took power, he ordered that construction be completed.

The historic theatre building on Calea Victoriei — now featured on the 100-leu banknote — was destroyed during the Luftwaffe bombardment of Bucharest on August 24, 1944 (see Bombing of Bucharest in World War II).

The theatre was inaugurated on December 31, 1852 with the play Zoe sau Amantul împrumutat, described in the newspapers of the time as a "vaudeville with songs". The building was built in the baroque style, with 338 stalls on the main floor, three levels of loges, a luxurious foyer with staircases of Carrara marble and a large gallery in which students could attend free of charge. For its first two years, the theatre was lit with tallow lamps, but from 1854 it used rape oil lamps; still later this was replaced by gaslights and eventually electric lights. In 1875, at the time its name was changed to Teatrul Naţional, its director was the writer Alexandru Odobescu

The front of the Bucharest Novotel, under construction in Calea Victoriei 2006, replicates the exterior of the old Romanian National Theatre approximately in its original location.

U/C pics:


Source


Wiki

Now:


Bucharest-guide.ro


Source

[Le Clerk]

BTW - awesome site: http://www.nowandthen.ro

[Le Clerk]

Another building on Victoria Ave. which has been recently rehabilitated:



including the fountain on the side to the main square...:









some details:



not all renovated, as it seems...:



and a film was being shot vis-a-vis:





BTW: a lot of tourists in the area.

[Le Clerk]

Originally Posted by Le Clerk

Now:


Bucharest-guide.ro


Source

More of that:

[tazzmaniadodo]

Originally Posted by Le Clerk

Another building on Victoria Ave. which has been recently rehabilitated:

not all renovated, as it seems...:

BTW: a lot of tourists in the area.

Recently rehabilitated e de la Summit-ul NATO

BTW de ce nu au facut si partea de jos a cladirii?

Si eu tot timpul cand trec pe acolo vad o gramada de turisti; In Piata Revolutiei in permanenta sunt cate 3-4 autocare de turisti....de obicei cu nr straine

[Le Clerk]

Hotel Bulevard, built in the second half of the 19th century, is also under renovations:







Old pics:





Later some pics with renovation works:


BTW: I know the hotel's address is not on Calea Victoriei, but on Elisabeta, but it's still at the crossroads. I will open later on another thread for Elisabeta and Carol boulevards. Cismigiu is also under reconstruction now.

[Suburban101]

Cismigiu park or the old Hotel? I could not imagine that hotel being open again

[Le Clerk]

The old hotel:

Hotel Cismigiu intra in renovare pana in anul 2010

and

Hotelul Cişmigiu intră în operaţie de lifting

BTW: very good pics with hotel Cismigiu now and after renovations here:

[Suburban101]

AMAZING! Nu mi vine sa cred ca in sfarsit ii pasa cuiva de hotel Cismigiu . EXCELLENT news!


Totusi e pacat ca nu isi pastreaza functia de hotel ci "se va transforma după reconsolidare într-un complex de apartamente şi spaţii de birouri pentru închiriat.
Din vechea construcţie va mai rămâne doar faţada. Interiorul va fi complet demolat din cauza degradării. "

[Le Clerk]

Ideea nu este rea...imoprtant este ca cineva a decis sa bage bani (multi) in renovarea (de fapt restaurarea) acestei cladiri. Sper ca altele vor urma pe Elisabeta. Si acolo sunt niste bijuterii arhitecturale lasate in paragina.