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Reconstruction and redevelopment of Old Tbilisi is necessary, however, after severe damage to an ancient rare cellar from the 17th century, methods and goals of the municipality are being questioned.

“The Tbilisi Development Fund is destroying a cellar of the 18th century that managed to survive the major Tbilisi burnout of 1795 by Agha Muhammad Khan.[...] Nobody complains, because everybody is afraid of the municipality and the government” a clearly frustrated Nana Janashia – resident of the Betlemi area in Old Tbilisi – speaks out about the recent ‘reconstruction’ works in the Betlemi area by the Tbilisi Development Fund, an organization created by Tbilisi’s local government to redevelop Old Tbilisi.

In March 2011 the Tbilisi Development Fund started ‘reconstruction’ works in the Kala area, the most ancient part of Tbilisi. However, the Fund demolished several ancient and rare cellars in the Betlemi area located in Kala, that have significant cultural heritage value, without even a permit to start reconstruction works; resulting in many critics questioning the methods and the actual goals of the organization.

Rare 17th Century Cellar Destroyed in Reconstruction Works

There seem to be several things at stake, first of all one should wonder what the goals of the municipality actually are – is there a sincere interest in maintaining and reconstructing Tbilisi’s cultural heritage, or is it merely making quick and cheap changes to impress tourists and investors? Secondly, the position of the citizens that own the property that is being effected by the reconstruction works – what are their rights?

In July the magazine ‘Liberali’ published an article in Georgian on the matter. Several experts criticized the construction works done by the Fund in the Kala area. According to article, in the ancient, medieval district of Lower Kala, historic homes no longer exist, and instead of reconstructing old buildings, new constructions have started. In 2009 here at Evolutsia we were already concerned with the proposed redevelopment, Michael Cecire wrote:

“This doesn’t mean it’s a bad project, especially considering that the project’s rational is to inject new life (and money!) into the area and helping spur more redevelopment of the Old Tbilisi area. Laudable enough, especially considering the sorry state of much of Old Tbilisi. But, my concern is that in the process of bringing vitality to a depressed and debilitated part of the city, Tbilisi will lose some of its most wonderful architectural gems in the process.”

These concerns are being shared by art historians and architects in Liberali’s article. According to architect Nato Tsintsabadze “the oldest part of town no longer exists [...] research has to be done to assess the implications for Tbilisi”; and art critic Maia Mania stated that by not rightfully preserving the old town’s features, it was as if its original charm had been ‘stolen’.

The destruction of Betlemi’s houses and consequently the cellars from the 18th century reveal larger flaws in the approach by the Development Fund. Although the Development Fund has responded to the critique by claiming that sometimes difficult decisions have to be taken, which not always seem to be in the best interest of the city, nevertheless it should be obvious that major mistakes as the destruction of valuable cultural heritage that might get Georgia on the list of UNESCO are incredibly ‘stupid’. However, the municipality and the Fund are doing all in their power to justify the mistakes they have made, a decision which could be interpreted ‘to protect Mayor Gigi’. It is well known that the mayor has rather large ambitions, and negative publicity in the eve of the presidential elections might hurt his position.

Reconstruction and Redevelopment is necessary in Old Tbilisi as it is literally falling apart. The question is however, at which costs?

Moreover, when analyzing these events it is important to keep in the back of your mind Georgia’s desire to show the world – read: tourists, expats and investors – that they are a modern European country. It seems as if the government is less interested in actually improving the historical sight, and is more interested in creating a second Sighnaghi – a small village in the Kakheti region that has been undergoing ‘reconstruction’ works in 2006, which has been heavily criticized because the reconstruction has only been exterior; thus seems to have had as only goal to create a disillusion of quick development to impress Georgia’s population, tourists and investors, rather than sustaining a historical sight for a prolonged period of time.

Reconstructions Betlemi Street

However, besides the devastating destruction of architectural important features, another issue that has to be addressed is the disrespect to private property rights. Nana Janashia, is one of the residents being effected by the redevelopment: “[t]he Tbilisi Development Fund is destroying [buidlings] and they are doing it without any consent of the owners, violating their property rights.” As Executive Director of the Caucasus Environmental NGO Network, Nana knows the road to take to object to these grave violations – and if it were not for her one might wonder if the world would have found out about these destructions.

When talking to Nana, it becomes clear she might even be more upset by the fact that her neighbors do not have the resources to defend themselves and their properties from destruction, and she is making a very good point here: the families residing in Old Tbilisi have been neglecting proper care for their housing solely because of one reason: lack of funding. These people are in general plain poor. The redevelopment does therefor not come as a surprise, or is per se being regarded as a negative, however, buildings (houses) are being destroyed without the owners consent – or an alternative solution. The residents have no choice but to let it happen to them.

In the Liberali article Maia Mania has some fierce criticism toward the government regarding the issue: “People are fleeing from the area, and their houses are no longer physically there“; and in my talk with Nana, she expresses the same concern: “these idiots smash down houses [...] and nobody complains.” Nana understands why people do not complain: fear for repercussions and not proper resources. She is upset to know her neighbors are unable to defend their own rights. That being said, right now Nana has started her own civil law suit against the government for the destruction of her property; however, she is mildly positive about the possible end result: “It is the municipality I am fighting against, it’s almost impossible to win such a fight.”

The Reconstructions do also have positive outcomes, however, how sustainable and carefully are the redevelopments implemented?

Related posts:

• Redeveloping Old Tbilisi
• On the Protests in Tbilisi
• Caucasus Watch: January 3, 2010
• Inclusive Foundation: ‘Hate biased violence is on the rise in Tbilisi, Georgia’
• An Analysis of the EU’s ‘Foreign Policy’ Towards Georgia