Bank building in Baranovichi
The building at 77 Sovietskaya Str. is in the city centre, therefore, its exterior always attracts passers-by. This is one of the architectural monuments protected by the state. The bank was built in 1927-1929 within the framework of the national plan to build new bank buildings. The buildings were designed by the most famous Polish architects of those days. Construction and finishing work was done by private building companies chosen on a competitive basis.
As a rule, the winners were building comanies from Warsaw, but workers could be hired from the local residents. The designs of bank buildings of that time were special in that together with business premises they inluced residential quarters for employees. The building of a district branch of Bank Polski in Baranovichi was designed in the same way by Stanislaw Filasiewicz in neoclassical style. Paricipating in the development of the bank interior was architect Tadeusz Rytarowsky. The construction work was done by a Warsaw company owned by Stanislaw Szczepansky, finishing work – by the firm “Terrazit”, the vault as well as the iron decorations were made by the firm “Gustaw Gottsholk” from Warsaw.
Originally, the building had two floors, the third floor appeared in the 40ies. The construction of the building, whose volume was 7,630 cubic metres, cost the customers 1,150, 000 zloty, a huge sum for those days.
The bank building composition (its planning as well as its interior) was subject to the interests of the financial institution. Everything here was done for the bank employees to feel comfortable and convenient as much as possible.
The service area included the entrance hall, the main hall, the director’s office, the conference hall, the archive, the changing room and the dining room for the employees. The residental part housed, among other rooms, 2 3-room flats with a bathroom and a kitchen.
Geographic coordinates: N 53° 07' 47,69" E 26° 01' 07,75"
Foto: Олега ПОНОМАРЕВА
