C&W/S&R advise on restoration of historic St Andrew's Anglican Church in Moscow

25 Jun, 2008, Moscow

St.Andrew’s Church to be restored by Cushman & Wakefield Stiles & Riabokobylko

St. Andrew’s Anglican Church in Moscow yesterday launched an US$8 million international appeal to restore its Victorian era buildings in central Moscow.

St. Andrew’s distinctive gothic church building is the only example of English Gothic architecture in the Russian Federation. As such, it is protected by the Moscow Historic Monuments Commission as an Historic architectural monument. On the property, at 8 Vozenensky Lane, a ten-minute walk from the Kremlin, sits also a three-story vicarage, of distinct Victorian style. It too will be restored as part of the multi-million dollar project.

To raise the necessary funds to restore the St. Andrew’s building complex, a charitable trust, ‘Friends of St. Andrew’s Moscow’ has been organized in the United Kingdom under the auspices of the Anglican Diocese in Europe. St. Andrew’s has also engaged the services of a UK architect specializing in historic preservation of English churches, Tony Redman of the Whitworth Partnership.

St. Andrew’s has selected Cushman & Wakefield Stiles & Riabokobylko, the Russian operations of global real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield, to provide a full range of project management services for the restoration project, including preliminary budgeting and scheduling, fund-raising, creating design drawings and a work budget. The land plot is 4,000 sq m and the total area of the buildings for reconstruction is 3,500 sq m.

Works for 2008-2009 envision tendering for and appointment of a Russian architect which will develop the overall site plan, restoration vision and set of working documentation together with engineers and UK consultants. The architect selected will be from among a number of Historic Preservation Institutes in Moscow that are licensed to conduct works on protected buildings. All works will be conducted under the supervision of preservation experts at the Moscow Historic Monuments Commission.

Actual construction works are expected to commence in the second half of 2009, first on the church, and then proceed to the vicarage. Works would be completed as of the end of 2012 under a preliminary schedule developed over the last 12 months by Cushman & Wakefield Stiles & Riabokobylko.

The launch event was also designed to provide would be donors an opportunity to inspect the building and to meet with representatives of the various Russian-run charitable organizations that call St. Andrew’s home, including:

The Russian Orphan Opportunity Fund which provides secondary educational tutoring for young Russian adults who have left the Russian orphanage system and are seeking higher education or better job options.
The Old World Foundation which counsels former narcotics abusers and their families along a 12-step model to keep them off drugs.
St. Andrew’s Theological Institute Library, a Moscow-based Russian Orthodox organization which maintains its library in St. Andrew’s tower. It is reputed to be the largest collection of English language theology books in Russia.
St. Andrew’s Church is home also to Moscow’s only English-language Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings.
Musically, St. Andrew’s Gothic structure claims its place as acoustically one of the best musical venues after the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory. As such, St. Andrew’s presents weekly classical concerts performed by Russian musicians who draw audiences of 100 or so. St. Andrew’s is also home to the Moscow International Choir and the British Women’s Club’s ‘Mellow Divas’.”

Anglican worship in Moscow dates from 1553 when Tsar Ivan the Terrible allowed the first non-orthodox services to maintain Christian and moral teaching among British traders employed by The Russia Company to harvest fur and timber.

Historically, the Anglican Church has occupied the territory at 8 Voznesensky Lane since 1832 when the congregation, largely Scottish merchants, purchased it and built a chapel for worship. In 1882, the chapel was replaced by a the Victorian Gothic building seen today and, ten years later, the red-bricked vicarage was added to the ensemble of buildings. The church building was designed by Manchester Diocesan Architect, R Knill Freeman of Bolton. The Vicarage was built by the generosity of a wealthy parishioner who also funded construction of what is now the Marco Polo Hotel (originally a dormitory for English nannies), and construction of a children’s hospital at the turn of the 19^th century.

In Soviet times, St. Andrew’s was best known as the recording studio for the state recording company Melodiya.

In 1995, on the occasion of the state visit of HM Queen Elizabeth II, then Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin ordered the return of the property for free use for religious, community and charitable functions. Since that time, the church has developed various charitable ministries in areas of educating Russian orphans and for counseling for substance abusers. St. Andrew’s also houses Moscow’s only English-speaking AA.

Although St. Andrew’s is officially a part of the Church of England, its congregation represents 14 nationalities and a dozen Christian denominations. St. Andrew’s is in many ways a “home away from home” for the international English-speaking community and its outreach to the Russian community.

“The Anglican Church here in the heart of the Russian Capital is both honoured and privileged to have initiated this week the first steps towards the complete restoration of the historic St. Andrew's Church and Parsonage. In so doing, we are ensuring that the growing expatriate community and those whom it seeks to serve in Moscow, will have a Christian base from which to operate for centuries to come,” said the Rev. Canon Dr. Simon Stephens, OBE, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s representative in Russia and Anglican Dean.

Tuesday’s Appeal Launch was organized with the support of the British Embassy and UK Ambassador to Russia, H.E. Sir. Tony Brenton. Speaking before the event, Ambassador Brenton observed “St Andrew’s Church has been a cornerstone of expatriate life in Moscow for many years. More than that, though, St Andrew’s serves as an important bridge between the people of Moscow, and those of us who are mere guests in this city. This restoration will ensure that St Andrew’s continues to fulfil this essential role, and I wish Simon Stevens and his team every success in their appeal.”

Guests and media had the opportunity to meet with representatives of the St. Andrew’s Restoration team, including Mark Stiles, Partner, General Director, of Cushman & Wakefield Stiles & Riabokobylko, which is providing provide a full scope of project management services for the restoration project. Mark Stiles commented: “We are extremely proud to have been chosen for this project for St.Andrew’s Church – an important focal point of life away from home for a significant portion of the international community in Moscow and the base for a number of Russian charities. We are aware of the importance of preserving the Church’s history and buildings for the present generation for the generations to come.”

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