Žirmūnai

The era of multi-purpose sports arenas began in the USSR in the 1950s. Following this trend, in 1964 a group of Lithuanian architects and engineers presented a project for a new sports palace in Vilnius. The construction of this architectural nugget of Brutalist architecture took seven years and was completed in 1971. The designers of the building were awarded the State Prize for their innovative solutions and the unique corrugated roof structure. One of the innovations was the transformable square and the 46-tonne stage, which folded like a book and stood vertically against the wall of the auditorium. The press stressed that “the interior of the Sports Palace has a cosy, serene feel”. A significant feature of the interior spaces is the wooden panel created by the artist R. Kavaliauskas. The building also had separate spaces dedicated to high-ranking Communist Party figures. As soon as it opened, the Sports Palace immediately became the venue for the most important events in Vilnius, and many musicians dreamed of performing here. The Sports Palace was also the venue for several important events related to the restoration of Lithuanian independence: on 22-23 October 1988, the founding congress of the Reform Movement of Lithuania (Sąjūdis) took place here, and on 14-16 January 1991, the public paid their respects to the victims of the January 13th Massacre, who were lying at rest in the building. In 2004, after the building changed owners and Siemens Arena was constructed, the sun began to set on the Sports Palace. However, the building has been entered in the Register of Cultural Heritage and is scheduled for reconstruction in the near future, preserving the most valuable features of the building.

In 2006-2008, the administrative building of the Chamber of Public Prosecutors was erected along Rinktinės Street; no one is indifferent to it – some people hate it, others praise it. The idea of architect Kęstutis Lupeikis was to emphasise the spirit of the institution that will be housed here, so the cube shape was used to symbolise rigour and justice. The colour black was also completely uncharacteristic of the site. The original 53-degree angled windows were added to give a dynamic feel to the robust and static composition. It is said that the prosecutors who moved into the new offices found it difficult to work for a while, feeling as if they were “suspended in mid-air”, and that the window cleaning services also faced specific challenges. In 2008, the building was nominated for the ‘Object of the Year’ competition.

Due to the difficult geopolitical situation, the Polish state, which ruled Vilnius between the wars, actively fortified the city to prepare it for possible isolation in the event of war. A large garrison of Polish troops was established in Vilnius, but it was soon discovered that the city had an underdeveloped housing system for senior military officers. In 1929, architects in Warsaw drew up standard designs for houses for officers and non-commissioned officers, which were implemented in several Polish cities. The buildings at Kazliškės g. 15 and 19 were built for 36 families of non-commissioned officers, and at Rinktinės g. 33 for 12 families of officers. All three were built in the 1930s. Some of the staircases of these houses still contain authentic details, such as wooden post boxes, and some residents believe that they have found interesting historical artefacts while renovating.

The friendship between the cities that developed during the Soviet era left an interesting trace in Žirmūnai – in 1970, a shopping and service centre ‘Minsk’ was opened here, while in Minsk, Belarus, the ‘Vilnius’ centre still exists today. Although there is no official sign with the name today, the name ‘Minsk’ has not disappeared among the population. An interesting interior detail awaits inside: in the lobby of the building, a decoration depicting the radio ‘Minsk’ was hung high up on the wall. The generations of my parents and grandparents also knew Minsk for its ‘diet’ canteen.

In 1974-1982, at the beginning of Žirmūnų Street, the Palace of Culture and Sports, which belonged to the Ministry of the Interior, was built according to the project of architect A. Mačiulis. Due to a shortage of building materials, the project was accurately reflected in the Russian term dolgostroyus meaning ‘long-term construction’. The complex consists of two blocks: the first (south) is more expressive, intended for cultural events, with a 580-seat amphitheatre, several dance halls, a buffet, and a bar. In the lobby, there is an impressive chandelier by K. Simanonis, in keeping with the fashions of the time, and on the third floor, above the staircase, the wall is adorned with the triptych ‘Culture. Progress. Sport’ by A. Stoškus. Two important rock and jazz festivals of the perestroika era, ‘Lituanika’85’ and ‘Lituanika’86’, were held here, and fans of the Chernobyl series may recognise the additional decorations in the main foyer to represent the Pripyat restaurant and hotel, and the adjacent orchestra rehearsal hall to represent the scene where volunteers were selected for the volunteer swim under the reactor. The Interior Ministry Palace has also been used by other filmmakers looking for interiors that are reminiscent of the late Soviet era. The second block of the palace complex, the northern block, is more modest and is dedicated to sports, with several training rooms.

Bridges have been complex and expensive structures from time immemorial to the present day. But whenever a new one was built, it was as if it marked a new phase of city growth. The first inhabitants of Žirmūnai complained about the very poor connections to the city. A new bridge in 1965 helped to solve some of these problems, and public transport soon began to use it. The best way to see the bridge is from below, where you can see why the bridge, which resembles a leaping beast, is sometimes referred to as the ‘dancing deer’.

In the 16th century, a manor known as Derewnictwa or Horodnictwa was established in the area, which functioned as an auxiliary holding to serve Vilnius castles. Later, it was owned at various times by the Tyzenhaus, Pacas and Wołłowicz families, and in the middle of the 18th century, the manor was divided into separate estates. The central part was taken over by the Lateran canon monks, who gave the estate the name of Tuskulėnai, after the Roman philosopher Cicero’s work ‘Tusculan Disputations’. During the Tsarist period, the area was ruled by high-ranking officials of the Russian administration or their relatives, which is when the white buildings that have survived to this day were built, commissioned by Governor-General Rimsky-Korsakov in 1825 and designed by Podchashinsky (who is, incidentally, originally from the town of Zhirmuny in Belarus). For a long time, the area was simply called ‘Losiuvka’ after the name of Colonel A. Losev, who ruled the estate in the second half of the 19th century.

In 1944-1947, the territory of the manor became a mass burial place for victims of repressive structures. After the executions in the NKGB-MGB internal prison (now Aukų g.), camouflaged trucks drove to Tuskulėnai with the corpses. The location was chosen so as not to be too far away from the city centre, for fear of partisan warfare in the forests. The victims’ remains were covered with caustic acids, the graves were flattened and planted, and hidden from the public. In 1994-1996 and 2003, investigations were carried out in the park and 724 instances of human remains were found. The bodies of 717 people were reburied in a new chapel-columbarium in 2004. The domed structure has exceptional acoustics and can be visited free of charge, by prior arrangement with the museum administration.

Although Žirmūnai is dominated by apartment buildings that were constructed at around the same time and resemble each other, there are also unusual inclusions. One of them is M. Katkaus Street, which is reminiscent of a rural settlement. Those who are more attentive to the city’s research may notice that this street is a continuation of Daugėliškio, Trimitų, and Piromonto Streets in Šnipiškės. So you can imagine that you are in a kind of ‘continuation’ of wooden Šnipiškės. Mikalojus Katkus (1852-1944) was a Lithuanian agronomist, public figure, book carrier, ethnographer, writer, author of ‘Balanos gadynės’. He is not directly connected with Žirmūnai or Vilnius, but he was called a true rural writer, so it is probably no coincidence that the most rural street in Žirmūnai is named after him.

The present-day Šiaurės miestelis (Northern Town) was used as a training ground by the army of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and in the 19th century, this function was taken over by the Tsarist Russian army, which built barracks, obstacle courses, trenches, firing ranges, etc. At that time, it was a remote place. Despite the growth of Vilnius, Šiaurės miestelis was used by the Polish army between the wars, and by the Soviets in the post-war period. Older Vilnius residents well remember tanks or other heavy military equipment rolling down Žirmūnų Street. In 1992, the area was demilitarised and slowly transformed into a large residential and commercial quarter, and was officially incorporated into Žirmūnai. New names had to be created when the street network was drawn up, as everything in the military town had previously been labelled as blocks. Today, Šiaurės miestelis has streets named in honour of Lithuanian soldiers, among them: S. Žukausko, J. Kubiliaus, K. Ladygos, P. Lukšio, V. Nagevičiaus  Streets. Other street names – Ulonų, Apkasų, Žygio, Trimitų – also remind us of the district’s former purpose, and the old Lakūnų Street, which has not changed its name for 100 years, is a reminder that a military airfield was established here as early as 1914. In 2001-2002, one of the largest mass graves of Napoleonic soldiers in Europe was discovered at S. Žukausko g. 25. The remains of 3,296 soldiers were unearthed in Šiaurės miestelis, presumably as part of a French defensive line (redoubt). At the intersection of S. Žukausko Street and Žygio Street, a monument designed by Antanas Kmieliauskas is dedicated to Lithuanian soldiers who died in the 1979-1989 Afghan War. You will easily notice that in the southern part of Šiaurės miestelis, many fine stone barracks and administrative buildings have been preserved.

In 1925-1927, a small inlet was dug on the right bank of the Neris at the initiative of a private entrepreneur for mooring and servicing ships. The complex of buildings included a timber-framed ‘fachwerk’ house, which is unusual in Vilnius and more typical of German and Klaipėda architecture. One of the buildings bore a mark indicating the water level of the great Neris flood in 1931. Currently, the pier is used in winter to harbour the ship ‘Ryga’, built by Kaunas Shipyard, and other river transport, which can be seen sailing on the Neris in the warmer months.

The sculpture ‘Joy’, sometimes called ‘Žirmūnų baranka’, created by the sculptor K. Kisielis in 1970, looks unusual in its renovated surroundings outside the ‘Lidl’ supermarket. This distinctive decoration was installed by the nearby ‘Žirmūnai’ Shopping and Service Centre back in 1969. Interestingly, for more than 20 years, just the concrete disc had remained on the site, but in February 2018, the bronze sculpture of the boy and a spiral – which had been long missing – was reunited with the main structure. The ‘Žirmūnai’ was the first new-style neighbourhood centre in Vilnius, bringing together many of the services needed by its residents. Such centres were to replace small shops and offices, and at the same time become the urban hubs of the neighbourhoods. The ‘Žirmūnai’ restaurant deserves a special mention: inspired by the 1970 Woodstock Festival, Vilnius hippies organised one of the first underground rock/big beat festivals in the USSR there. In the summer of 2016, the empty Žirmūnai building was demolished and replaced by the new Lidl. On the initiative of the residents of Žirmūnai, the ‘Joy’ sculpture was preserved by moving it a few metres away from its original location.

One of the most important advantages enjoyed by the first settlers of Žirmūnai in the 1970s was the proximity of the river. The city grew, but the river did not disappear; it remained at the edge of the district. A trip to Žirmūnai is worth ending at Žirmūnų beach, a great place to refresh your body with the water of the Neris. In recent years, it has been revitalised with new amenities. It is especially fun to come here in the warmer months on the ‘EuroVelo 11’ cycle path.