on 13 September, demolition work began on a tenement house at 46 Grzybowska St. The machine crushing successive fragments of the building has aroused great interest among Varsovians and has also evoked many emotions. For some, it is a sad farewell to yet another fragment of the old Warsaw, while for others it is a natural consequence of the city’s development and the adaptation of its space to modern needs. The building that witnessed the pre-war development of Wola is giving way to new infrastructure. According to the plans, the space left by the tenement will be used to widen Grzybowska Street and arrange a pavement and lawn.
Grzybowska 46 – history of the building
The origins of the tenement building date back to 1939. The outbreak of the Second World War interrupted the investment, as a result of which the building never received its final appearance or full facade decoration. Post-war Warsaw was rebuilt in a completely different shape, and the tenement house at 46 Grzybowska Street, unplastered and finished in a makeshift manner, remained in the incongruous landscape thanks to its solid reinforced concrete construction. In the 1960s, it was planned to be demolished on the occasion of the construction of the Osiedle za Żelazną Bramą (Estate behind the Iron Gate), but the decision was put on hold and the building eventually survived the following decades. However, it had not been in use for years and its technical condition systematically deteriorated.
Wolski Ostaniec from Stanisław Bareja’s film “Wanted, Wanted”
Despite the fact that architecturally the tenement had no special qualities, its symbolic and historical value was undeniable. The building was the only remnant of the old buildings between Jana Pawła II and Żelazna Streets, reminding us of the character of this part of Warsaw before the war. During the occupation, the building found itself within the boundaries of the Warsaw Ghetto, becoming a silent witness to those dramatic events. Years later, the building became ‘famous’ through pop culture. In 1972, it served as a film set for Stanisław Bareja’s comedy “Wanted, Wanted”, which made it recognisable also outside the local historical context.
Attempts at protection by the “Stone and what?” association
The history of the tenement has led to social circles making efforts to save it. In the summer of 2023, the “Stone and What?” association applied for the building to be entered in the register of historical monuments. The aim was to stop the demolition and preserve the last vestige of the old buildings in this area of Wola. However, the application was not approved. The National Heritage Institute, the Mazovian Provincial Conservator of Monuments and the Capital Conservator of Monuments considered that, due to its catastrophic technical condition and lack of significant architectural value, the tenement did not meet the criteria for protection. In the end, the social organisation that initiated the efforts also accepted the refusal, respecting the arguments and opinions of specialists.
Grzybowska 46 disappears from the city landscape
The tenement was removed from the municipal register of monuments already in 2014. At the same time, the local development plan was passed, which provided for the widening of Grzybowska Street and thus sanctioned the demolition. The formal rationale and the technical condition thus determined the future of the building. Today its demolition is a symbol of the inevitable changes taking place in a developing city. Warsaw is thus losing yet another piece of its former landscape. It is worth considering how much more of the capital’s past can be sacrificed in the name of modernisation and development.
Source: Okno na Warszawę, Kamień i co?, ABC Warszawy
Read also: Architecture | Stone | Modernism | History | Warsaw | Interesting facts
Fragments of the tenement house in the film “Wanted, Wanted” in 1972 and until recently. Photo: Dailymotion and WhiteMAD/Mateusz Markowski
