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Concept
Khrushchevka
Summary
A khrushchevka (khrushchyovka), also known by the derogatory nickname khrushchoba (khrushchoba), is a type of low-cost, concrete-paneled or brick three- to five-storied apartment building which was developed in the Soviet Union during the early 1960s, during the time its namesake Nikita Khrushchev directed the Soviet government. Khrushchevkas are sometimes compared to the Japanese danchi, similar (often government-sponsored) housing projects from the same period, which by some accounts were directly inspired by them.
An updated high rise version, the brezhnevka, was built in the 1970s and 1980s and included many upgrades including larger apartments (particularly, larger kitchens), elevators, and garbage disposals. This was then followed by what is known unofficially as the novostroika, meaning "new construction". The novostroika retain the panel-house style used in the Soviet Union, but are taller, have 21st century amenities, parking, more colorful and decorative themes, and are built over a much larger area. These, however, are not government-built, instead they are built by private contractors on behalf of local governments. An example of this is Kudrovo in Leningrad Oblast, Russia.
Traditional masonry is labor-intensive; individual projects were slow and not scalable to the needs of overcrowded cities. To ameliorate a severe housing shortage, during 1947–1951 Soviet architects evaluated various technologies attempting to reduce costs and completion time. During January 1951, an architects' convention, supervised by Khrushchev (then the party director of Moscow), declared low-cost, quick technologies the objective of Soviet architects.
Two concrete plants were later established in Moscow (Presnensky, 1953; Khoroshevsky, 1954). By this time, competing experimental designs were tested by real-life construction, and prefabricated concrete panels were considered superior. Other possibilities, like in situ concrete, or encouraging individual low-rise construction, were discarded.
Official source
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