Almaty plans to expand its list of locally significant historical and cultural monuments by adding 27 more sites, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to the press service of the megacity's akimat, a special commission has already begun inspecting residential and public buildings of historical, architectural and cultural value. In the first stage, 27 sites were selected for review.
The list includes the main academic building of Satbayev University, the rectorate of Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, the National Bank building, the former House of Soviets on Abylai Khan Avenue, the arch of the Central Park of Culture and Recreation, the old TSUM department store building, the Tchaikovsky Almaty College, the Institute of Geological Sciences, the Scientific Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology, residential buildings of the Kirov Plant, the memorial museums of Nurgisa Tlendiev and Dinmukhamed Kunaev, the Atakent entrance arch and Republic Square.
The commission will examine the condition of these buildings and structures and then determine which of them can be recommended for inclusion in the list of locally significant monuments.
The akimat said 160 historical and cultural monuments are currently under state protection in Almaty. Of these, 34 are of republican significance and 126 of local significance.
"Most are architectural and urban planning monuments — 91 sites. Another 50 are monumental art, 12 are archaeological, five are ensembles and complexes, and two are of sacred significance," the akimat said.
Most of the monuments are concentrated in the Medeu and Almaly districts — 65 and 50 respectively.
To preserve historical buildings and structures, protective zones are being established around them with construction restrictions. This helps protect not only the monuments themselves but also the surrounding historic buildings, the akimat noted.