Misplaced Pages

#0

37-522: A 101 m (331 ft) tall structure, it is one of the symbols of the city and representative of the "golden age" in the development of Belgrade during the 1965–1974 mayoral term of Branko Pešić . The building is located at the intersection of Kralja Milana (central city street), Resavska, and Masarikova Streets—near the tripoint of the Savski Venac (whose territory the building lies on), Vračar and Stari Grad municipalities. Neighborhoods in

74-967: A member and secretary of the Committee of the Communist Party of Serbia for Zemun, the SKOJ Committee secretary for Zemun and Belgrade , member and secretary of the City Committee for the League of Communists of Serbia and the president of the Socialist Alliance of Working People of Yugoslavia City Council for Belgrade. He was also a member of the Bureau of the Central Committee of the People's Youth of Serbia,

111-407: A weak creative mind. As soon as the building was finished, his colleagues massively criticized him personally, as a good professor but the one who would never escape the anonymity if not selected by the party for this job, and for the design itself. However, construction proved that Pešić was capable for the task, and in time only the criticism of the façade color remained. Pešić declined to debate on

148-496: Is 40,000 m (430,000 sq ft). In the 1980s, the disco club Šestica (The Six) was located on the building's sixth floor. Though operational for only three years, it was quite popular because it provided patrons with an excellent view of the city. It was the only club in Belgrade at the time that was not located in an adapted utility room or a basement. Other hospitality venues were restaurant "STB" (formerly "Plato") on

185-454: Is a radio and television broadcaster in Belgrade , Serbia. It was the first broadcast station outside the national electronic media system. RTV Studio B broadcasts in a radius of 100 km around Belgrade, covering an area in which there are three million viewers. One notable program was "Good Morning, Belgrade" ( Serbian : Beograde dobro jutro ), which was launched in 1975. Studio B

222-520: Is almost completely owned and operated by the City of Belgrade . The first several stories were occupied by the Robne kuće Beograd department store; on the other floors offices of Studio B (formerly city-owned TV and radio station) and Happy TV station are located. On the other floors, there are business premises, as well as the head offices of IKEA for Serbia and other Belgrade media are also located in

259-448: Is located in the heart of old city center, stretching from Terazije to Slavija Square , with an emphasized aspiration to dominate with its high 24-story part as the city's reference point. For decades, an observation deck was operational on the 22nd floor. There was also a restaurant "Beograđanka" next to it, known for its decorative gold plated tiles. The restaurant was closed in 1989 when "Studio B" purchased this floor. The façade of

296-542: Is often referred to as the golden age of Belgrade for which he was nicknamed the Pericles from Zemun. Pešić married twice. From his first marriage with professor Zagorka Golubović he had a daughter named Branislava and from his second marriage with Desanka Desa Pešić he had a son Lazar and a daughter Sofija. During his lifetime, he was awarded many Yugoslav awards including the Commemorative Medal of

333-491: The British Virgin Islands , which also recycles money from Serbia. Several present and former executives of the company turned out to be, directly or indirectly, connected to Siniša Mali , Serbian finance minister and former mayor of Belgrade. In January 2021 it was announced that the reconstruction will be finished by the end of the year. Decorative lights will be added along the facade of the building, from

370-648: The Mostar interchange , Gazela Bridge , Terazije Tunnel and the Beograđanka among others. During his tenure, the ambitious plan of lowering Belgrade onto its surrounding rivers (Belgrade on the Sava) was introduced along with initiating the Belgrade railway junction and the Belgrade Metro . For a time, his economic advisor was Slobodan Milošević after his graduation from university in 1966. Pešić's tenure as mayor

407-826: The Republic Assembly of SR Serbia and the SFR Yugoslavia Assembly numerous times. He was chosen as a member of the Central Committee of the League of Communists of Serbia at the Fourth and Fifth Congresses of the party. He also served as president of the Football Association of Yugoslavia from 1953–1955 and 1956–1957. Pešić was Mayor of Belgrade from 1965 to 1974 and was one of the most popular mayors of Belgrade. During his tenure, many important buildings were built such as

SECTION 10

#1732790229000

444-539: The occupying forces . He later joined the Yugoslav Partisans where he entered into Bosnia as a member of the Vojvodina Brigades. During the war he was a political commissar and battalion commander. He became a member of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ) in 1942. After the end of the war, he graduated from the Đuro Đaković Political School and had various political functions. He was

481-546: The 5th floor (known for its decorative gold plated tiles) and club B-74. After the idea of Đoko Vještica  [ sr ] (1939-2008), journalist from Studio B , a drinking fountain was built on the plateau at the Beograđanka's entrance. Named the "Spring of Life" ( Vrelo života ), it was opened on 6 April 1982, to commemorate the 6 April 1941, and German bombing of Belgrade in World War II . After Vještica's death,

518-718: The Partisans of 1941 among others. He was awarded the Order of the Hero of Socialist Labour on 24 January 1986. Pešić died due to cancer on 4 February 1986 and is interred in a family plot in the Zemun Cemetery . A street in Zemun, near his family home, bears his name. The elementary school in Zemun has also been named after him. RTV Studio B RTV Studio B , more often called Studio B ( Serbian Cyrillic : Студио Б ),

555-439: The adjoining block of buildings. Despite Yugoslavia being a Communist, one-party state at the time, the architects chose for major project were selected from two dominant branches, either professorial or from business sector. However, though a professor, architect Pešić was directly appointed by the party, and this lack of public competition caused discomfort among the architects. Pešić was considered to be an excellent engineer but

592-474: The building consists of aluminium drapes and the double paned thermopane glass. The outer blinds are operated electronically. The material was imported from Italy. City chiefs were choosing between the darker and the lighter color of the façade material. They opted for the darker one, as it was of higher quality, but the choice wasn't universally greeted at the time. The entire façade covers 11,500 m (124,000 sq ft). Total floor area of "Beograđanka"

629-469: The building. Blic daily still has some offices in Beograđanka although they have moved most of their business to a new building. After the privatization of the "Robne kuće Beograd" in 2007, owner of the first four floors became "Verano Motors". Studio B is the only tenant who has been in the building since it was opened in 1974. As of June 2012, the basement floor is occupied by a Mercator retail store. In January 2019, deputy mayor Goran Vesić announced

666-595: The current fashion in architecture after the Toronto-Dominion Centre , while citizens who opposed it said that dark building doesn't fit to the white city (meaning of "Belgrade") and that dark paint should be scratched. It was compared to the Space Odyssey's Monolith or a tombstone , and called "Black Widow", a common, colloquial nickname in Belgrade for dark buildings, or those with black rooftops. Size and location were also criticized, due to

703-587: The fifth floor to the top. Branko Pe%C5%A1i%C4%87 Branko Pešić ( Serbian Cyrillic : Бранко Пешић , pronounced [brâːŋko pěʃitɕ] ; 1 October 1922 – 4 February 1986) was a Serbian politician in SFR Yugoslavia . Pešić was a member of the Yugoslav Partisans during the Second World War and was the Mayor of Belgrade from 1965 to 1974. He is widely remembered as one of

740-413: The foundations on 29 March 1969 and the building was opened on 22 April 1974. During the digging of the foundation, ten strong water springs were discovered. Eventually, they were all conducted into the city sewage system. The construction was executed using the latest methods in constructing and during the next 5 years, some 20,000 workers of all kinds were employed in erecting the building. The building

777-505: The issue or to refute the criticism, believing he has done the right thing, designing Beograđanka just the way it is. His colleagues ignored the building for the next two decades. In the second half of the 1990s, at the meeting in the Belgrade's Institute for the Protection of Monuments, a session was organized to select the post-war objects which will be protected as the cultural monuments. Architect Zoran Manević suggested Beograđanka, but

SECTION 20

#1732790229000

814-421: The mid-1960, when it was demolished. Planned pre-war commercial highrise was designed by architect Grigorije Samojlov. Construction of the building began in 1969. It was built by two people of the same name and from the same part of Belgrade, Zemun : mayor of Belgrade Branko Pešić and architect Branko Pešić  [ sr ] , who designed it. Mayor Pešić laid the charter of the building's construction into

851-612: The most popular Belgrade mayors as his decade-long tenure saw the construction and completion of many important projects. Pešić was born on 1 October 1922 in Zemun to father Dimitrije "Mita" (1900–1976) and mother Anka (1897–1983). He completed elementary school in Zemun and high school at the Zemun Gymnasium . After that he studied law at the University of Belgrade . As a student of the Zemun Gymnasium, he joined

888-462: The narrowed view on the Church of Saint Sava and problems with parking, communal services and deliveries. Some architects simply dismissed the entire design as "being black", without evaluating all the other aspects of the building. Others asked was it really necessary to "thrust" it into the old core of the city. Still, with the lower annex, the building was nicely connected to the much lower objects in

925-419: The panoramic view of the city. Becoming symbol of Belgrade, in time it was labeled as an object which deserves social gratitude and accolade for the designers, a building that no one would be ashamed even today, including the problematic elements. Still, though described as iconic and the most imposing building in the old section of Belgrade, even in the 2020s some architects criticized its design. The building

962-570: The plans by the city to sell the building as it is the "pure loss" for the city. As the building is under the preliminary protection (meaning that it has to be treated like it is protected unless the protection process is rejected), so the prospective buyer can't demolish it. In July 2020, city offered half of the building for sale. The asking price was set at €20,6 million. The bidding was canceled on 31 July as no one applied. Architects, economists, citizens' groups and political opposition started criticizing city's actions in these matters, especially with

999-614: The plateau was named in his honor. The plateau was embellished with the green wall along the Masarikova Street in 2014. The wall was fully renovated in April 2021. The building invoked both admiration and criticism. Some architects thought that the Interbellum skyline of Belgrade, which the Beograđanka disrupted, should be preserved. The main problem, however, appeared to be the dark colored façade. The critics ascribed it to

1036-820: The president of the Zemun City Municipality Assembly from 1955 to 1958, an instructor in the Central Committee of the League of Communists of Serbia, secretary for commodity traffic in the Executive Council of the Socialist Republic of Serbia and the Vice- President of the Presidency of SR Serbia . He was also President of the Assembly of SR Serbia from 1982 to 1984. He was chosen as a Member of Parliament of

1073-508: The sale as the confirmation of their claims that the entire job will be done "within the family", or the ruling party. Iconic building was sold for the price of €860 /m2, which is considered "miserable" for downtown Belgrade. Reporters discovered that "Marera Properties" basically exists only on paper, and that behind it is the Russian fund seated in Cyprus connected with offshore companies from

1110-606: The same space for the lowered price of €16,5 million. On 9 September 2020, offered part of Beograđanka was officially sold to the "MPP New Project", a daughter company of the "Marera Properties", for the offered price plus additional €8 million in future investments, as they were the only participants in the bidding. "MPP New Project" was founded two weeks prior to the bidding, with the capital of 100 Serbian dinars or €0.85. "Marera Properties" previously acquired several objects in Belgrade, founding separate companies for purchasing each one. Economic reporters and opposition parties regarded

1147-506: The similar, much longer failed process conducted for another symbol of Belgrade, the Sava Centar congressional center. Opposition politicians openly accused city administration of corruption and theft. Through repeated, collapsed biddings, the prices of the objects are being reduced each time, as allowed by the law, until they are sold to some tycoon close to the ruling establishment for a very low price. In August 2020 city again offered

Beograđanka - Misplaced Pages Continue

1184-415: The vicinity include Cvetni Trg to the east, Krunski Venac to the northeast, Andrićev Venac to the north, London to the northwest, and Savamala to the west. Three parks are close to the building: Pioneers Park , Manjež and Park Gavrilo Princip . Students Cultural Center and Yugoslav Drama Theater are just east of Beograđanka. House of Jeremija Milivojević was built on the location in 1890. It

1221-573: The youth revolutionary movement and became a member of the League of Communist Youth of Yugoslavia (SKOJ). After the invasion and occupation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1941, he left his studies and joined the anti-fascist movement in Yugoslavia. He first worked politically in occupied Zemun and its surroundings where he took part in preparing and organizing sabotages and diversions against

1258-576: Was a one-floor, corner house. The facades were ornamented in the Academism style. In 1941, right before World War II began in Yugoslavia, the plans were made to build the high-rise on the location. The investor was to be the Teokarević family  [ sr ] , a major Serbian textile magnates. The plans were scrapped due to the outbreak of the war, and the Milivojević's house remained until

1295-466: Was heavily criticized by other architects and his motion was almost unanimously rejected. After several decades, it proved that the building neither damaged the Belgrade's cityscape from any of the four sides ( Syrmia , Banat , Zvezdara , Avala ), nor "darkened" the White city as represents only one piece in the skyline's mosaic. Actually, it turned out to be a good positioned tower-like counterpoint in

1332-490: Was launched as a radio station in 1970 by the journalists from the Borba group, which included Marko Janković . In 1972, it became a corporation owned by Belgrade's Municipal Council. From 1975, Duško Radović was the editor of Studio B. Studio B became independent in April 1991, but this was reversed by a decision of the corporate court on 15 February 1996, when the last serving director of NTV Studio B, Milorad Roganović

1369-464: Was removed from his duty, and from that day on, Studio B has served as a government-owned company. In October 1997, Zoran Ostojić was removed from the post of director and Lila Radonjić from the post of editor-in-chief of Studio B, and this was opposed by a demonstration. In May 2000, Studio B was again taken over. On 3 December 2012, the News programme of Studio B and some other programmes have dropped

#0