In the 1980s, in Vilnius, a massive project of a national stadium was launched, but was left unfinished and has remained in limbo for decades. After a long period of planning, the city has begun to tear the concrete ruins down in order to build a new Lithuanian national stadium by 2025, public broadcaster LRT reports.
«The ruins of the unfinished stadium, which has stood in Vilnius for many decades and turned into a kind of national disgrace, are being demolished. This is the introduction to the construction of a multifunctional complex», Vilnius Deputy Mayor Valdas Benkunskas stated as the demolition works were launched on Tuesday, January 4.
The demolition of the unfinished stadium is estimated to cost around 300,000 euros and the construction of a new one – at close to 40 million euros.
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The clearing of the territory should take up to four months, with the construction of the new National Stadium starting right after that. The latter should be finished by May 2025, Benkunskas unveiled.
The new complex is planned to include a training ground, sports museum, cultural and educational centre, library, and sports facilities for non-formal education.
The construction of the National Stadium started in 1987 and was stopped six years later. In 2008, further 33 million euros were invested into the project. In 2015, the then project was interrupted after the Lithuanian Public Procurement Office declared its tender illegal.
The article originally appeared on LRT English: https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/1580172/national-disgrace-vilnius-starts-demolishing-its-unfinished-1987-stadium
Vilnius begins to demolish stadium ruins to build new one for EUR 40 million
