The central core of Moscow-City

The "Central Core" of "Moscow-City" is the true heart of the entire business district. It is built on plots 6, 7, 8. The "Central Core" is formed by the shopping center "Afimall City", the Novotel hotel and the cinema and concert hall, located at Presnenskaya Embankment, 2.

History of creation

According to the project of the architect who designed the entire Moscow-City business center, B. I. Thor, a large park was to be located in place of the central core. But the concept of the business quarter gradually changed, and most of the initial ideas had to be abandoned in favor of objects more interesting for investors.

Therefore, it was decided to build a core complex on the site of the park. This idea came from the architect Meinhard von Gerkan. According to his project, it was to have the form of a glass and concrete dome, on which the contours of the continents would be visualized and there would be a light projection of the change of day and night. The complex was to have 9 floors, on which a cinema hall, restaurants, museums, etc. would be located. But this idea did not take root either. Today, only the Moscow-City cinema and concert hall, which is still under construction, has the features of Meinhard von Gerkan's project.

As a result, the construction of the central core facilities began in 2005. The first to be built was the Afimall City shopping center by AFI Development, which is currently managing and operating it. It was commissioned in May 2011. The architectural design was prepared by the Moscow State Unitary Enterprise Mosproekt-2.

The Novotel hotel was designed by the architectural bureau Atome Associes. It was built with funds raised by the companies Tashir and Soglasie in July 2013 on plot 8a. According to available data, investments in it amount to 50-55 million dollars. Today, all issues of management and operation of the building are managed by Montex-Service LLC.

At the end of May 2018, Deputy Mayor of the capital Marat Khusnullin said that the "Central Core" would be fully completed within 4 years. The only object that had not been completed at that time was the cinema and concert hall, the construction of which began on the 6th plot. The deadlines for the completion of the building were repeatedly postponed. But according to M. Khusnullin, all work is planned to be completed and put into operation in 2022. 120-140 million dollars have been invested in it.

Initially, the central core project implied the construction of an overpass. But it had to be abandoned in favor of the construction of a full-fledged city square, which will provide an opportunity to hold mass cultural and other events on the territory of "Moscow-City". It is connected to the cinema and concert hall and is located next to the shopping center "Afimall City", the metro station "Vystavochnaya", as well as the bridge "Bagration" and the tower "Evolution".

The total investment volume in the MIBC Central Core amounted to approximately 300 million dollars.

History of construction

The central core is considered one of the most complex objects in Moscow City in terms of design. Its total area is 450,000 sq. m.

The construction of the shopping mall and hotel proceeded without any significant ups and downs. Problems arose only with the construction of the cinema and concert hall. Its monolithic construction, except for the section adjacent to the shopping mall building, was completed in February 2017. But inspections of the quality of construction work repeatedly revealed violations. As a result, since 2014, more than 70 orders have been issued to eliminate them, and the developers had to pay fines of 1.85 million rubles.

Composition of the "Central Core"

The "central core" has underground and above-ground parts. The first includes:

• Vystavochnaya metro station, where trains from three lines of the Moscow metro arrive;

• pedestrian zones and crossings;

• a parking lot designed for 2,750 cars;

• technical rooms;

• public space represented by a modern shopping complex.

On the western side of the Central Core there is a VIP parking lot.

The above-ground part is quite small compared to other Moscow-City buildings. The tallest building is 55 m. The entire above-ground part can be divided into 3 zones:

• Novotel Hotel;

• shopping and entertainment complex "Afimall";

• a cinema and concert hall that can accommodate up to 6 thousand people.

The central core is planned to be connected by a high-speed transport line with Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo airports.

Novotel Hotel

The building is 55 m high and has 10 floors. Its total area is 52,116 sq. m. It has 5 stair-elevator blocks, which allow you to move around all floors of the hotel, as well as go down to the underground parking and shopping areas. It houses a hotel of the upper middle class segment of the French hotel chain, part of the Accor group.

Novotel includes:

• numbers;

• restaurants;

• terraces;

• winter gardens;

• offices.

The hotel parking lot has 93 parking spaces.

Shopping center "Afimall"

The 6-storey shopping mall "Afimall City" with a height of 53 meters is located on plots 7 and 8b. In addition to 6 above-ground floors, it has 4 underground floors, and its total area reaches 450,000 sq. m. Therefore, the shopping center "Afimall" is the largest shopping area in the capital.

The main recreational space is located under a glass dome. It is divided into 4 zones, each of which reflects the main features of a certain time of year. It has:

• shopping area;

• exhibition areas;

• entertainment and sightseeing facilities;

• ice rink;

• park;

• cafes and restaurants;

• galleries, etc.

The underground parking of Afimall City can accommodate 2,750 cars. The shopping center has a total of more than 450 shops and cafes.

Cinema and Concert Hall

The 9-storey building is being built on plot 6. Its area will be over 38,000 sq. m., and its main purpose will be to host mass events, concerts, forums, etc.

The concert hall will be located above the underground floors of the central core and will have an original stage section that can be opened up when needed and given 16 different shapes, including an open arena option. It will be covered with a glass dome on top, which will be part of the dial of the largest clock in the world. In the summer, it will be raised halfway to provide direct access to sunlight inside.

The cinema and concert hall building will also house:

• restaurants, cafes, bars;

• SPA centers;

• beauty salons;

• fitness centers;

• beach club;

• art galleries, etc.

The hall will accommodate 1,576 seats.

Interesting facts and features

The dome of the Moscow-City Cinema and Concert Hall will be decorated with the world's largest clock, which promises to take a worthy place in the Guinness Book of Records. Moskomarkhitektura approved the project for the construction of a 64-meter clock on the building's facade back in 2016, which will be 21 meters longer than the current record-holder clock on the skyscraper in Mecca.

According to the project, they will be stylized as an inlaid box with a clock mechanism. The dial will be the building's façade covered with titanium-coated steel panels, and the hand will be a moving beam of light. The atrium of the main entrance is planned to be made in the form of a clock mechanism using silk-screen printing on glass, and the escalators will look like compressed springs. The clock will be clearly visible not only from each building of Moscow City, but also to pedestrians.