The building at Chmielna 9 in Warsaw, which once served as the headquarters of the Central Committee of the Democratic Party, is an important architectural and historical element of the capital. Built between 1953 and 1957, the building has just been entered in the register of monuments of the Mazovian Voivodeship to protect its cultural and historical value.
Chmielna 9 – the creation of the building
The building at Chmielna 9 was erected on the site of a tenement house that was destroyed during World War II. It previously housed the Palace cinema theatre, a popular cultural venue in pre-war Warsaw. The new urban design of the street was developed by Zygmunt Stępiński, who from 1945 headed the workshop for the reconstruction of historical assumptions at the Spatial Planning Directorate of the Capital Reconstruction Bureau. The authors of the architectural concept of the building were Mieczysław Zawadzki and Barbara Popławska, and partly Janina Zawadzka-Stańkowska. These are people associated with the studio “Miastoprojekt – Specjalistyczny” of the Central Board of Design Offices for Urban Construction. The building was designed as a three-storey structure with 13 axes, with a usable basement and a passage in the central part of the façade. The façade was enriched with architectural details, and the multi-pitched roof was covered with sheet metal and decorated with dormer windows. Inside, there were representative spaces, including a hall with an elegant staircase, a meeting room, conference rooms, offices and a canteen with a buffet and smoking area. The rooms were designed in accordance with the public building style of the time, with terrazzo floors and simplified architectural details. The construction of the building encountered difficulties, including design changes, stoppages and the need to correct faulty elements. The building was finally completed in the first half of 1957, and already in May the celebrations for the 20th anniversary of the Democratic Party took place there.
Changes and modernisations
As early as the 1960s, the first modifications to the building began. In 1962, grilles were installed in the ground floor passageway, and in the following years the utility rooms were converted for administrative use. In 1966, the decision was taken to add an additional storey. The work on its realisation and the reconstruction of the interiors was carried out between 1969 and 1970, according to a design by Stefan Deubel. The modernisation of the interiors and design elements was developed by Albert Rozner, and Halina Ernst-Zieleniewska also participated in the work. Further changes were made in 1979, including the reconstruction of the lobby, façade and rooms on the ground floor. These transformations adapted the building to the current needs of users, but gradually changed its original character.
Chmielna 9 and its transformations after 1990
After the political changes in Poland in the 1990s, part of the office space and the commercial premises at the front of the building were allocated for rent. The basement was initially converted into warehouses and later into a catering and entertainment establishment, which necessitated the modernisation of the interior and the addition of new entrances. In 1991, however, voices were raised insisting on the need to preserve the historic design of the building and its original composition. In the following years, the premises were gradually adapted to accommodate the new tenants. Despite the changes, the building served as the headquarters of the Democratic Party until 2016, when it passed into the hands of a private owner.
The architecture and significance of the former Democratic Party headquarters
The building at 9 Chmielna Street is an example of the representative headquarters of a post-war political party, whose architecture reflects both classical influences and simplifications characteristic of modernism. It was built as part of the reconstruction of the frontage of Chmielna Street, blending harmoniously into the new buildings while retaining references to the earlier style. Its changing fate bears witness to the political, social and urban transformations taking place in Poland over the last few decades.
Source: Mazovian Voivodeship Historic Preservation Officer
Photos: K. Pająk, K. Czuczman, U. Dudek, WUOZ in Warsaw
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