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Centro 73

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Coordinates: 47°01′04″N 28°49′25″E / 47.0177°N 28.8235°E / 47.0177; 28.8235
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47°01′04″N 28°49′25″E / 47.0177°N 28.8235°E / 47.0177; 28.8235

Centro 73 (pronounced [ˈtʃentro ˌʃapteˈzetʃʲ ʃi ˈtrej]) was a social and cultural centre in Chișinău and the first squat created in Moldova. The early twentieth century villa at 73 Alexei Mateevici street was a monumental building which the owner intended to demolish. It was occupied in August 2010 and evicted in December the same year.

History

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The villa at 73 Alexei Mateevici street in Chişinău, the capital of Moldova, was constructed in the early twentieth century and was rated as a local monument by the Academy of Sciences.[1] After World War II, it was lived in by a Romanian general.[2] In 2005, the president of the Academy bought the building, intending to live there, and after two years sold it to an Italian businessman. The villa then stood empty for several years.[3]

Social centre

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Inspired by squatting movements in other European countries, artists and students occupied the villa in August 2010. It was in a bad condition and with the help of volunteers it was cleaned up.[2] It opened to the public on 25 September 2010 as Centro 73, the first squatted, self-managed social centre in Moldova.[4][3] The centre was used as a place for alternative culture and events such as concerts and exhibitions were organized.[5][6] On 20 November 2010, Centro 73 did a solidarity action for freedom of political prisoners in Belarus.[7]

The Italian owner intended to demolish the building despite its monumental status, which concerned the occupiers since in the previous two years, forty buildings out of a total of 977 monuments had been demolished.[8] On 1 November 2010, a protest was organised by Centro 73 against demolitions under the slogan "Salvaţi Chişinăul istoric" ("Save historic Chişinău"). This was featured in local media such as Publika TV and Jurnal TV.[8][9] The building was evicted in December 2010 and the squatters claimed a victory since the owner had pledged to renovate instead of destroying it.[2] Afterwards, the same group of people briefly occupied the former Turkish embassy, also on Alexei Mateevici street.[10] They then set up Art Labyrinth in collaboration with the city authorities. The legally established cultural centre based in an old museum provided space for concerts, meetings and art exhibitions.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Alexei Mateevici, 73 – Vilă urbană". www.monument.sit.md. Centrul Istoric al Chişinăului. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Various (2011). New urban topologies: The Chisinau and Minsk experience. Stockholm: Färgfabriken. pp. 80–83. ISBN 978-91-977274-8-8.
  3. ^ a b Timpul (21 October 2010). "Mateevici 73 în prag de demolare?" (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 4 November 2010. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
  4. ^ Jurnal TV (27 September 2010). "Squat, acum și la Chișinău!" (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
  5. ^ Rabitz, Cornelia (24 October 2010). "Staatskunst und Underground in Chisinau". Deutsche Welle (in German). Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  6. ^ a b Caucaso, Osservatorio Balcani e. "Moldavia: Chișinău underground". OBC Transeuropa (in Italian). Archived from the original on 16 June 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  7. ^ Indymedia Belarus, minsksolidarity (21 November 2010). Солидарность в Кишинёве (in Russian). Archived from the original on 23 November 2010. Retrieved 27 November 2010.
  8. ^ a b "Un grup de tineri a protestat azi împotriva demolării unei clădiri istorice din Capitală". Publika (in Romanian). 1 November 2010. Archived from the original on 2 June 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2020.
  9. ^ Jurnal TV (1 November 2010). "Salvaţi Chişinăul istoric!" (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 27 November 2010.
  10. ^ Lebedev, Alexandru (21 September 2019). "Centro 73 - povestea primului squat din Chișinău care a rezistat doar patru luni în 2010". Diez (in Romanian). Retrieved 1 December 2020.
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