Latvian personalities and achievements
Different people have carried the name of Latvia beyond its borders. Opera singers Inese Galante and Elīna Garanča, theatre director Alvis Hermanis and the New Riga Theatre, conductor Mariss Jansons, composer Pēteris Vasks and pianist Vestards Šimkus have all gained wide recognition. Winter sports representatives can also boast success – Latvian ice-hockey players, bobsleigh crews, skeleton and sled riders. We can also be proud of our talented inventors. The miniature camera designed by Valters Caps at the beginning of the 20th century carried the name VEF Minox around the world. This tradition is today continued by the company JZ Microphones with its studio microphone Black Hole. Due to the specific production technology of these microphones, their high quality and comparatively low price, they have gained recognition among Hollywood’s sound engineers. At the closing ceremony of the 2006 Olympic Games, the Aerodium air acrobats from Latvia surprised millions of viewers around the world by flying at the top of an air current 25 m above the ground. In the 2007 Dakar Rally Raid, the attention of racing fans was attracted by the unique yellow OSCar race cars made by the Latvian company OSC, which successfully competed with teams from the world’s strongest car manufacturers.
Construction of the National Library of Latvia
The National Library of Latvia, also dubbed the Castle of Light, is one of the largest and most complex projects at the implementation stage not just in Latvia, but also in a European context. The renowned Gunnar Birkerts is its main architect.
“Skonto Būve” Ltd. is one of the three companies in charge of constructing the National Library building. “Skonto Plan” Ltd. has been confirmed as the main sub-contractor for the design, manufacture, supply and installation of steel and glass structures.
The thirteen-storey building is expected to have a total area of 40 000 m2. The project comprises the main library building, as well as technical facilities, underground car parks, a pedestrian bridge leading to the waterfront, underground crossings under Uzvaras Boulevard and the rebuilding of Mūkusalas Street. The projected construction cost is approximately 193 million euro (VAT included). The construction is scheduled to be completed in 2011.
Construction of the Pārventa library
In April 2007, the Ventspils City Council passed a resolution to support the project of the new Pārventa Library.
Pēteris Bajārs, the young but already well-known Latvian architect, proposed to design the new library building to starkly contrast the main library. The Pārventa Library building resembles a two-layered triangle with rounded corners. The new library was opened in August 2009 during the Ventspils City Festival.
Renovation of Reval Hotel Latvija
In 1998, the hotel management made a decision to renovate the hotel as the building required rebuilding and upgrading. Work was commenced in 2001 and completed in a short 10 months.
It was essential to develop a design allowing the building to blend into the city skyline. Glass was used extensively in the design and a panoramic lift and viewing platforms were installed along the exterior wall. A spacious glass-walled room on the building’s roof contains a health club. Adjacent to it is a vast decorative steel structure enhancing the new design. The total area of the building in which work was performed amounts to 22 388 m2, while the construction volume equalled 64 396 m3.
Stage two of the rebuilding commenced in 2004. A six-storey building with 200 hotel rooms and a 1 000-seat conference auditorium was constructed as part of the project.
Rebuilding the Espa Riga Spa Centre
The building that houses the spa centre of the internationally renowned ESPA brand belongs to the building complex of Reval Hotel Latvija. Its design was fashioned with reference to the other buildings within the complex. The building is a historical and architectural monument. Construction area: 4 000 m2.
The building contains a reception hall and an inner courtyard, several saunas, massage rooms, aerobics and fitness rooms and several swimming pools, of which one is installed on the roof terrace. The specifics of the work necessitated the preservation of the stability of the old walls during construction. The special ceiling structure of the building allows swimming pools to be located on several floors. It also features interesting oval-shaped stairways with a single support at each end of the stairs, without additional load-bearing columns or walls.
Construction of the Olympic Sports Centre
The construction of the Olympic Sports Centre was conducted in two stages.
In the first stage concluded in 2005 all external and internal glass and steel structures were assembled. The glass structures were created in a way that emphasized the exciting design of the building – such as the funnel-shaped main entrance. Exits facing the nearby Arena Riga complex have been designed as impressive glass pilasters that transform into horizontal skylights. The external stairways are housed in a cylindrical structure that is part of the glass curtain wall system.
In the second stage, rebuilding works were performed to accommodate the 2006 NATO summit and installed glass and steel structures in two new adjacent buildings.
Administrative facility of the Daugavpils municipal police
The facility is located in the vicinity of the historic Daugavpils Fortress. The total area of the facility is 48 000 m2. The design scheduled six stages of construction with a total construction area of 30 000 m2. The facility comprises buildings with various purposes: an administrative building, a dormitory, a forensic laboratory, a sports facility, a vehicle management facility and a public multi-level car park. An additional set of designs was developed for a vehicle management facility and a multi-storey car park, including area planning, architecture, structure of the buildings and engineering networks.
The specifics of the project required a conceptual consolidation of various buildings and solutions for their application. Extremely rigorous security requirements applied to all buildings, and the exchange and storage of information were regulated.
Rebuilding OF THE Riga Central Railway Station
All work on this project was conducted in two stages. The first stage was concluded in May 2003 and comprised the creation of a multi-level shopping centre, cafés and offices. At this time, the façade of the station building was also rebuilt and an underground car park with the total area of 4 340 m2for 130 vehicles was constructed.
During the second stage of the project, staff facilities were renovated, windows were replaced and engineering networks were rebuilt. This stage was completed in September 2003. All work was carried out without interrupting the work of the railway staff.
Construction of the embassy of the Republic of Belarus
“Skonto Būve” Ltd. has had a long-standing and successful partnership with the official authorities of the Republic of Belarus. In 2001, the Embassy of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of Latvia awarded “Skonto Būve” Ltd. the contract for the design and construction of the consulate building.
The total area of the building is 500 m2 (250x2). Poured concrete, Fibo wall blocks and metal structures for the roof were used in the construction of the building. The building is supported by steel piles. The light façade is complemented by two arched glass structures, rendering the design contemporary.
Rebuilding and restoration of Ģertrūdes centre
The 1903 building on Ģertrūdes Street designed by the architects Scheel and Scheffel is one of the most lavish Art Nouveau buildings in Riga. During this project, the façade of the building was completely renovated and its historic interior restored. Tiled woodstoves of historic significance were restored within the building complex. A rosette-shaped ceiling decoration, antique fireplaces and parquet flooring were also renovated. Stairwell decorations were carefully restored: ornamental metal railings, stained glass, landings trimmed with ceramic tile. The building also features an autonomous heating system and modern, fast lifts. Contemporary wooden sealed double-glazed window units throughout the five-storey building fully resemble the original and preserve their decorative function. Total area of the premises: renovation area of 3 591m2 and newly built area of 3 290m2.
Restoration of the façade of the orthodox cathedral (2003)
The proposal to renovate parts of the façade of the Riga Nativity of Christ Cathedral was developed within the framework of the charitable event “Svet”.
The Riga Nativity of Christ Cathedral was built between 1874 and 1884 based on a design by architect Robert Pflug in the so-called Russian-Byzantine style, which is typical for Orthodox churches in the Eclecticism period. The renovation of the façade was conducted in accordance with the design that was created after researching architectural and historical data, and it included the cleaning, painting and renovation of architectonic components, rebuilding of the roof and renovation of the crosses.
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