The largest complex of state country houses in St. Petersburg, entitled ‘Prigorodnoye’, will be transformed into a joint-stock company. The cost of land in the Kurortny District is hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the price may afterwards reach $1 billion.

This summer the St. Petersburg Administration will hold a tender to fulfill the investment project worth about $500 million in the territory of the State Unitary Enterprise ‘Prigorodnoye’. The new form of business will serve as an additional incentive for investors to make additional investments. The project might be the first stage of privatization, which has to be finished by late 2005. The stock in ‘Prigorodnoye’ can be put on sale later on. The office of the vice-governor on social issues, Lyudmila Kostina, said that the final objective of the project was to make the country houses a decent place to live in.

"Selling shares in the State Unitary Enterprise ‘Prigorodnoye’ is necessary to raise the quality of services for those who suffered the siege and took part in World War II”, the Deputy Chief of the Department for horticulture and gardening of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region, Andrey Lyah, said. “‘Prigorodnoye’ does not mean to sell off its property; at best, some country houses will be let on lease,” Andrey Lyah said.

By the end of April the directorship of the State Unitary Enterprise backed by the city administration will refine the concept of the area’s development. The director of ‘Prigorodnoye’ Vitaly Rodionov said a few European companies had already got interested in the project. “In accordance with the concept, settlements of standard design will appear in the Kurortny District, and they will consist of both upscale cottages and middle-class houses.

The city of St. Petersburg is to own the land rented by the State Unitary Enterprise ‘Prigorodnoye’, which in its turn, will sub-rent the territory to the investors for the pay-back period of the projects. We intend to sign a few contracts this summer”, Vitaly Rodionov said.

News source: www.dp.ru
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