The homes from the 'fat' years are very questionable: the wall of a room in a new building has started to move 0 7

An emergency situation has arisen in a building constructed during the so-called "fat years" and inhabited since 2008. The Department of Urban Development of the Riga City Council confirmed to the publication "Latvijas Avīze" that deformations were recorded in two corners of one room in the apartment, while no similar damage was found in other rooms of the apartment. Following the inspection, conclusions were drawn and appropriate orders were given to the responsible parties, while living in the building is permitted. However, problems in this building have arisen before.

In search of those responsible, "Latvijas Avīze" concluded that the companies that implemented the project... have vanished into thin air. Former representative of the construction company "Kalnozols celtniecība", now retired entrepreneur Valdis Kalnozols stated that his company was "only a contractor" for the project on Pucese Street and knows nothing about the current problems of the building, but in a broader context, he pointed to a lack of quality architects.

"It can be said that the houses built between 2005 and 2007 are very questionable," Kalnozols added, speaking about the construction practices of the "fat" years.

For almost a year, the maintenance of the affected building has been handled by the apartment owners themselves, who created the society "Pūces nami 43". Its representative, entrepreneur Oskars Bokis, who works in the construction industry, noted that the previous managers did not provide proper care for the building, and after the transfer of powers, the first investments in its maintenance have already been made. Commenting on the specific emergency situation, Bokis emphasized that the problem concerns only a local wall and is not related to the load-bearing structures of the building.

One of the largest real estate developers in the Baltics - the Lithuanian company "AB Hanner" - together with the Latvian design company "I un MC" established LLC "Pūces birzs" in 2005 to implement construction projects in Latvia. A year later, the company signed a contract with the construction company "Kalnozols celtniecība" for the construction and installation works in the multi-story residential complex at Pucese Street, 41 and 43, for a total amount of 1.5 million lats (approximately 2.13 million euros). On the unkempt territory of three hectares in Purvciems, near the "Furniture House", it was planned to build four nine-story residential buildings with a total capacity of 320 apartments over several years. The company "Kalnozols celtniecība" won the competition by offering the lowest price and the shortest deadlines for the work. The archive of decisions from the administrative commission of the Riga City Council indicates that the project developer was fined 4,500 lats (approximately 6,403 euros) already at the initial stage of construction.

LLC "Pūces birzs" was constructing a nine-story building on Pucese Street without an approved construction project, as well as without a construction permit and insurance. The company ceased to exist in 2011 - three years after the residential complex was put into operation. Meanwhile, "Kalnozols celtniecība" changed its name to "MTK construction" in 2007 and completely ceased operations in less than ten years, according to data from "Firmas.lv".

"During the wealthy years, there was a system where a separate LLC was created for each residential building: it built the house, sold the apartments, and for another two years, during the warranty period, managed the property, not allowing external managers. During this time, minor complaints from residents were addressed, while serious problems were postponed. Once the two years passed, the LLC was liquidated - and all ends went into the water," described the practices of that time the head of the Latvian Association of Property Managers Vitolds Peipinsh.