The renovation of the Irkutsk State Circus has come to a standstill. They promised to complete the “large-scale reconstruction” for one billion and 90 million by the end of 2024, but this will definitely not happen. The building, closed due to its emergency condition since 2020, looks at the city with empty eye sockets of windows in a daze. The repairmen dismantled everything down to the walls and left like clowns. The construction site is deserted.
Let us recall that at the start of this very reconstruction, instead of the dismissed Ludmila Boldaruk The director of the Irkutsk Circus (the oldest permanent circus in Eastern Siberia) was appointed Anastasia Agafonova – an unknown tour organizer from Tyumen. Well, it's true, about a year later she was sent to head a similar institution in her homeland.
And the deputy director of the circus, who was promoted from her position, remained in charge of the business. Irina VershininaShe has diplomas in civil engineering (Irkutsk Polytechnic) and economics (East Siberian Institute of Economics and Law), and she is also an accountant with in-depth knowledge of labor legislation. But even this, as we can see, did not help speed up the reconstruction of the institution entrusted to her.
Because the head of Rosgoscirk appointed by the federal ministry of culture (and for Rosgoscirk, all state circuses are branches) is still Sergei Belyakov (since December 2020). Before him, since 2012, there were six heads of Rosgoscirk, and all of them left their posts with scandals.
Belyakov turned out to be a tough nut to crack.
Sergei Grigorievich's career began in 1994 at the Chita Philharmonic, where he organized concerts. What he did in the next 10 years is unknown, and in 2004 he headed the Nizhny Tagil Circus, then the Izhevsk Zoo and the Udmurtia Circus. Soon the authorities had questions about the intermediary firms headed by the wives of the institution's directors, with whom the circus had financial relations. A case was opened on episodes of withdrawal of 120 million rubles, which then strangely fell apart.
Then there is another gap in Belyakov's biography, and he surfaced in 2016 as deputy general director for touring activities of the Federal State Enterprise “Rosgoscirk”. Belyakov is friends with the Zapashny brothers. What tricks in the structure of Rosgoscirk under Belyakov are not talked about, including with the participation of private firms! A film could be made about this… And yes, this largest circus company in the world (38 stationary circuses) is headed by a person who has, as proven in court, a fake university diploma.
We don't know who in the federal government Belyakov and other people connected with Rosgoscirk saved from imminent death, but, without mincing words, they are simply shelling out more than a billion each for the reconstruction of completely different circus buildings built in completely different years in the country. Without mincing words. For comparison, the construction of Children's Clinic No. 9 in Irkutsk, with nine thousand square meters, cost more than twice as little. In St. Petersburg, simultaneously with the planning of the renovation of the Irkutsk Circus, they reported that 1.5 billion rubles would be spent on the construction, together with the planning of a NEW circus building of similar capacity…
…And so in 2021, Belyakov announced that five circuses would be reconstructed by 2024 within the framework of the federal targeted investment program: Volgograd, Irkutsk, Voronezh, Tverskoy and Yekaterinburg. And yes, they added about a yard and a half for each. These five are “in addition to those circuses that are already being renovated and are undergoing major repairs or reconstruction.” Well, this is, for example, in addition to Penza, which, instead of the planned year, has been reconstructed for a record 11th year (and they are constantly adding 850, 453, or some other million rubles to the initial funding)…
Well, needless to say, it's the promised year 2024, and none of the five circuses named will be completed for sure. They are now naming different dates: 2025, 2026, 2027… It is noteworthy that Belyakov, visiting sites with at least some work, cheerfully lists the Irkutsk Circus among those being reconstructed, and he also listed it in June 2024. Although there hasn't been a single worker at the site in Irkutsk for a long time…
In Irkutsk, the situation is further complicated by the fact that this reconstruction contract for 1.09 yards is being raised by the Moscow-based (with Ingush roots) JSC Promstroyservis (OGRN 1080603000180, founder Abdurkaev Salaudi Sanukayevich) with a staff of less than a hundred workers.
And one can understand them: when else would they try in Siberia?
This same “Promstroyservis”, like a thread behind a needle, moves behind the former circus manager Mikhail Smorodkina rolling stock mechanical engineer by education, a failed businessman by life. After a stormy career at Rosgoscirk, illuminated by more than one financial scandal, Mikhail Andreevich took over as director of the Museum of the Heroic Defense and Liberation of Sevastopol in 2021.
And soon the Ingush-Moscow Promstroyservis entered the project to continue the comprehensive reconstruction of one of the most striking landmarks of this city – the Historical Boulevard, which is under the jurisdiction of the museum. The work was planned to be completed in 2022 – and now in the best case scenario in 2027. In particular, at the first stage Promstroyservis was supposed to complete the reconstruction of four buildings and partial improvement of the adjacent territory. And it did something. But “significant shortcomings and defects in the work performed” (on the repair of four buildings) were identified, and the work was not accepted. It is scary to even imagine what kind of shortcomings and defects there are, considering how much the authorities want to finally hand over the said facility (including because the people, to put it mildly, are outraged). And yes, they periodically add funds to this project too.
By the way, in 2021, the same Promstroyservis was under threat of bankruptcy, but miraculously contracted for a three-billion-ruble construction project for a building of the regional children's hospital in Arkhangelsk. Following this, at the end of 2023, suspects in large-scale fraud during construction were detained. They, acting as a group of persons by prior conspiracy, organized the conclusion of additional agreements to the state contract in the interests of controlled organizations, as a result of which the budget of the Arkhangelsk region suffered damages in the amount of more than 127 million rubles in the form of unreasonably increased expenses.
It seems that we are talking about two employees from the management of JSC Promstroyservis and a former employee of the controlling organization.
It is noteworthy that this company always takes on contracts with fat financing. And it took on, for example, the Arkhangelsk project right after a solid trifle in its track record. Well, how trifles? Everything is relative. For example, they renovated the assembly hall at Moscow State University for a very solid 13 million rubles for such a project…
In addition, this enterprise has permanent problems with taxes and court fees. In addition, Kontur.Fokus reflects numerous violations that were identified at its facilities at various times by state construction supervision agencies.
In general, what is all this for? Apparently, we shouldn't expect the revelation of the Irkutsk black magic session in the circus right now. Nor should we expect the completion of the reconstruction in the foreseeable future. “Promstroyservis” hasn't yet answered for Sevastopol. But in the distant future, there will most likely be interesting stories)…