I kind of promised in the comments thread that I would try to dig out some information on the building where the fire burst out yesterday. Here goes, then...
Kolizej, as the building is known, was built in 1846. The edifice is rectangular, 120 m long by 30 m wide, and initially served as a stable and transitional barracks for the Austrian military troups befre deployment - mostly to the northern Italy. Slovenia at that time was part of the Habsburg monarchy (Austrian Empire - and from 1867, Austria-Hungary). The building aslo hosted a riding school and was, with its dance hall and cafes, a social hub for the local bourgeoisie. When the military permanently left at the end of the 19th century, tradesmen and artisans took over, turning part of the building into workrooms and shops. After WWII the building was nationalised (as was most of the private property) and remodelled into a residential area for the socially endangered population. Since then little was invested into the renovation and the building slowly deteriorated. In 1995 one of the supporting walls collapsed and buried a few residents so the whole building was evacuated. Since then it has offered temporary residence to the homeless and junkies.
There have been no official reports on the incident but it was unofficially stated that the fire had started in one of the mattresses used by the homeless but was put out before it could cause any serious damage. No persons were found inside the building at the time of the fire or immediately afterwards.
Kolizej, as the building is known, was built in 1846. The edifice is rectangular, 120 m long by 30 m wide, and initially served as a stable and transitional barracks for the Austrian military troups befre deployment - mostly to the northern Italy. Slovenia at that time was part of the Habsburg monarchy (Austrian Empire - and from 1867, Austria-Hungary). The building aslo hosted a riding school and was, with its dance hall and cafes, a social hub for the local bourgeoisie. When the military permanently left at the end of the 19th century, tradesmen and artisans took over, turning part of the building into workrooms and shops. After WWII the building was nationalised (as was most of the private property) and remodelled into a residential area for the socially endangered population. Since then little was invested into the renovation and the building slowly deteriorated. In 1995 one of the supporting walls collapsed and buried a few residents so the whole building was evacuated. Since then it has offered temporary residence to the homeless and junkies.
There have been no official reports on the incident but it was unofficially stated that the fire had started in one of the mattresses used by the homeless but was put out before it could cause any serious damage. No persons were found inside the building at the time of the fire or immediately afterwards.
5 comments:
I am glad no one was hurt. that building has had a long and colorful life. It is sad that it's being allowed to decay.
Thank you for answering our questions. Something about the building captured my imagination.
yes, it is sad in a way. although not an architectural gem, the building is rather unique and i would like to see it preserved. however, there were other plans, like to build an ugly colossal monstrosity of an amusement centre in its place which plans i absolutely horrified to see. but its destiny is not yet decided so there may be a glimmer of hope that reason will prevail...
Thanks for this. I would have loved to see it with the dance halls and cafes. I think that would have been pretty exciting. Sad that the government let it go to such ruin. Especially after the history it had. At least no one was hurt in the fire. It will be interesting to see what they do with it now :)
i agree, it would have bene interesting to sneak in at that time.
from what i know about the way things work here there may be some discussions about the destiny of the building in the city council but then the whole thing will stall for another 5 years or so until some official or other will try to make profit for themselves and come up with another insane idea. all the while the building will further deteriorate and eventually there will be nothing left to preserve (i hope i'm wrong, though, but...)
Bureaucracy at it's finest pffft
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