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Booming Moscow Community Villages

Moscow communities are again becoming stylish, and are being revived on a different basis. Contemporary Moscow communities are not designed for a spartan way of life. On the contrary, the future residents are people of means who are ready to pay several million dollars for the privilege of living in a very comfortable house located just a half-hour ride from the Kremlin.

Sometimes the names change: a luxurious complex called Ostrov (island) recently appeared in Krylatskoye between the rowing canal and the Moskva River. This community is wonderfully situated, away from the large Moscow highways and arterials, in a protected area where birds nests are quite common. A golf course is nearby.

The complex consists of four-story houses, each of which has between 16 and 24 apartments. As many as 270 families can live in the complex. The plans are to construct an infrastructure whose pride will be a huge 17,000-sq.m. sports complex.

The historical atmosphere has been preserved in the construction of the XXI-Century Pokrovskoye-Glebovo Nobility Estate. In 1776, Pyotr Streshnev, Governor of Kiev, built his estate here. It has survived to this day, albeit in a much altered state.

Different mansions are being constructed at the present time, with apartments ranging in size from 67 sq.m. to 400 sq.m.. The cost of one sq.m. ranges between $2,150 and $4,500. In addition to the usual amenities associated with exclusive housing, such as independent heating and filtered water, the residents of Pokrovskoye-Glebovo enjoy their own private beach.

The luxury communities in the Western District of Moscow are particularly noteworthy. High-ranking officials were building their suburban country homes in this area even before the Revolution. Rublevskoye Shosse is considered very prestigious primarily thanks to its clean air.

The oldest settlement in these parts is Matveyevskoye, located in the western part of Moscow on the left bank of the Ramenka River, a tributary of the Setun. In ancient times, the land was divided among several landowners. The westernmost part belonged to a well-known and very wealthy nobleman named Boris Morozov, tutor to Tsar Alexei Romanov (the father of Peter the Great), and who essentially acted as his Prime Minister. In the XIX Century, this area, with its amusement park and hothouses, was popular with Muscovites for building their dachas. Luminaries such as actor Mikhail Shchepkin, writer Nicholas Gogol, painter Ivan Kramskoy, and historian Timofei Granovsky, spent their summers there.

Located nearby, Matveyevsky Lyes (forest), was also widely known. It has survived to the present day, and was declared a Nature Reserve in 1991, as was the entire Setun River valley. Not far from Matveyevskoye, in the village of Volynskoye, was Stalin's close dacha (as opposed to distant), in which he died in 1953. The tradition of holding high-level summit meetings has survived. During the presidency of Boris Yeltsin, high government officials often gathered here to discuss important matters of state.

Matveyevskoye was incorporated into Moscow in 1960, and mass residential construction began soon after.
The Setun cottage community is located on Minskaya Street, and is populated by representatives of large foreign companies.

Opposite Setun is Zolotye Klyuchi (gold keys), one of the most expensive and exclusive housing complexes in Moscow. One sq.m. starts at $2,500, and goes up from there. Offers to sell in the exclusive communities of Moscow are so rare that prices no longer mean anything.

About the Author

Winston Johns is a correspondent of the famous Danish newspaper in Moscow, Russia. For the past 2 years he has been working as a freelance journalist and editor for the web-site http://www.budgetmoscow.com - Moscow Hotels and Moscow Apartments

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