Building of the Municipal Administration of the town of Kyustendil

Overview

The building of the Pedagogical School in Kyustendil is an architectural monument of culture, as well as a historical one. Today it houses the mayor's office with the administration of Kyustendil municipality and the municipal council. The construction of the building was initiated by the City Council, headed by Mayor Hristo Lekarski. The foundation stone was laid on the day of the holy brothers Cyril and Methodius and the Bulgarian literature and culture - May 11, 1889. The Ministry of Education commissioned the project from Viennese architect Friedrich Grunanger. The monumental building is located in the historic center of Kyustendil on the site of pre-liberation residences of Ottoman local leaders who emigrated to Macedonia in 1878, including Zeynel Bey, son-in-law of the last creamer Mehmed Celebi Agin. West of the building is the central square of Kyustendil - Velbuzhd with the proportions of the area - 110/50 m, designed by architect Hristo Kovachevski in the canon of the so-called. the golden section in urban planning. The construction of the building of the Pedagogical School was entrusted to the entrepreneurs brothers Ivan, Vasil and Grigor Grebenarovi, as well as to Italian stonemasons and Kyustendil masters - masons and carpenters from the Trun region for the finishing works. The total net value of the project was BGN 326,533 as of 1889. The building with a built-up area of ​​1516 m2 was inaugurated with a water dedication on October 10, 1894. It has two floors, with 15 study rooms on the lower floor and another 10 on the upper floor. a clock with a medieval silver bell since 1429, which was moved after the destruction of the Clock Tower (Sahat) - built in 1665. After the closure of the Pedagogical School in 1908 with the proclamation of independence and the Kingdom of Bulgaria, the building temporarily housed the State Boys 'High School opened in the city, and in 1911 - 15 years - Municipal Girls' High School. The building of the former Pedagogical School is one of the symbols of Kyustendil, as a witness to almost all historical events related to Bulgaria and the "city of Constantine" after the Liberation.