As the world’s most expensive city, new development in Moscow is progressing at breakneck speed, often with historic buildings falling casualty to progress.The Detsky Mir toy store is one landmark that has escaped the wrecking ball, but there is plenty of controversy surrounding its coming internal remodel/

The Art Deco flagship store, which covers an entire bloc of the city centre near the Kremlin, “was today closed for renovations,” said a spokesman for retail chain Detsky Mir, or Children’s World.

Local architects have campaigned against the plan to tear out the 1957 building’s ornate central atrium and remove its signature carousel as part of a bid to boost floor space by one-third.

Only 40 percent of the new store will be dedicated to children’s goods, developers said.

“I came to Detsky Mir today with a pain inside,” said Muscovite Marina Kryukova, who took her young daughter around the toy store on Monday to mourn its passing.

The final work of celebrated Moscow architect Alexei Dushkin, the building is regarded as marking a turning point between the grandiose construction of the Stalin era and the 1960s minimalist revolt that followed. (Google)

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A very well done photo documentary article on the tower under construction as the centerpiece of the Moscow City project can be found at the Real Russia Project.

Moscow’s futuristic Federation Tower and the Moscow City complex become popular symbols of the New Russia. In both Moscow and St. Petersburg, the Federation Tower is featured on billboards for the Russian Ministry of Defense’s Zvezda (Star) TV channel. The Moscow City complex was also featured in the Russian dark comedy film 20 Cigarettes.

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