Neboder
Encyclopedia
1 Ilica Street is a skyscraper
located in Ilica Street
overlooking Ban Jelačić Square
in the Lower Town
area of Zagreb
, Croatia
. In Croatian, the building was known under the generic title Neboder (lit. Skyscraper) as it was the first business skyscraper in the country, but this use is today obsolete.
The building, designed by the trio of Slobodan Jovičić, Josip Hitil and Ivan Žuljević, was built between 1957 and 1958 and was officially inaugurated on 22 August 1959, when Većeslav Holjevac
was mayor of Zagreb. It was the tallest building in Yugoslavia
at the time of its completion, and it was the first building in the country which featured an aluminium façade
(aluminium sheets for the building were manufactured at the Utva aircraft factory in Pančevo
). Other notable high-rises built earlier in Zagreb include the nine-story modernist Löwy Building built in 1933 and the so-called Wooden Skyscraper designed by Drago Ibler
- but since they were both residential buildings which resembled skyscrapers in design but not in function or size, the sixteen-story 1 Ilica Street is regarded as the first "bonafide skyscraper" built in Zagreb and Yugoslavia.
The principal investors were KONČAR Group and Ferimport, two large state-owned companies. The building later housed Ferimport offices, but it also featured an observation deck
and a restaurant on its top floor (later converted into a short-lived disco club in the early 1990s) and a small shopping arcade which was built around the base of the building, connecting Ilica, Gajeva, Bogovićeva and Petrićeva streets. The observation deck was open to the public for decades, but it was fenced by security railings in 1967 after a man committed suicide by jumping off it and landing on a woman passing by, who was also killed.
On 29 November 1970 (Yugoslav Republic Day), political activists Zvonko
and Julienne Bušić
used the observation deck to throw leaflets advocating Croatian independence, for which they were arrested. (They later went on to hijack a TWA
airliner in 1976 with the intention of convincing the international media into publishing a similar leaflet.)
Ferimport later experienced a dramatic downturn in the 1990s after it was privatized
in the years following Croatia's independence and the fall of communism, and the building visibly deteriorated in this period.
In 2001, three years after Ferimport had entered administration, it was sold for 6 million euros to Peter Doimi de Frankopan, a British real estate investor who claimed lineage to the House of Frankopan, a Croatian aristocratic family thought to be extinct in the 17th century. Frankopan had plans for a large scale reconstruction of the building, but the initial concept (which entailed a complete redesign of the façade and the addition of panoramic elevators, spiral staircases and a few extra floors), was rejected by the city's institute for the protection of cultural heritage. The project was then delayed for four years until a revised renovation plan was finally approved by city authorities in December 2005.
Following the approval, renovation was finally launched in 2006 and was finished in early 2008. The project was designed by the Aukett Fitzroy Robinson interior design practice in collaboration with the Zagreb-based architecture studio Proarh, and the actual work was done by the Strabag
construction company. The most significant change in the exterior was the replacement of the originally clear windows with dark gray glass. The building currently has 5,600 m2 of office space, and the observation deck on the top floor is closed to the public.
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
located in Ilica Street
Ilica (street)
Ilica street is one of the longest streets in Zagreb and considered to be the most expensive residential street in the city. The busy street is home to many shops and cultural sites and spans the entire western half of the city, from the Ban Jelačić Square in the city centre up to the Črnomerec...
overlooking Ban Jelačić Square
Ban Jelacic Square
Ban Jelačić Square is the central square of the city of Zagreb, Croatia, named after ban Josip Jelačić. The official name is Trg bana Jelačića...
in the Lower Town
Donji Grad
Donji grad is one of the 17 city districts of Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. It is located in the central part of the city and has 45,108 inhabitants . The official name of the district is rarely used, for it is dubbed centar by most of the Zagreb residents....
area of Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. In Croatian, the building was known under the generic title Neboder (lit. Skyscraper) as it was the first business skyscraper in the country, but this use is today obsolete.
The building, designed by the trio of Slobodan Jovičić, Josip Hitil and Ivan Žuljević, was built between 1957 and 1958 and was officially inaugurated on 22 August 1959, when Većeslav Holjevac
Veceslav Holjevac
Većeslav Holjevac was a Croatian and Yugoslav soldier and communist politician.Holjevac was born in Karlovac, at the time in Austria-Hungary. He joined the Communist Party of Yugoslavia in 1939...
was mayor of Zagreb. It was the tallest building in Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
at the time of its completion, and it was the first building in the country which featured an aluminium façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
(aluminium sheets for the building were manufactured at the Utva aircraft factory in Pančevo
Pancevo
Pančevo is a city and municipality located in the southern part of Serbian province of Vojvodina, 15 km northeast from Belgrade. In 2002, the city had a total population of 77,087, while municipality of Pančevo had 127,162 inhabitants. It is the administrative center of the South Banat...
). Other notable high-rises built earlier in Zagreb include the nine-story modernist Löwy Building built in 1933 and the so-called Wooden Skyscraper designed by Drago Ibler
Drago Ibler
Drago Ibler was a Croatian architect and pedagogue.His style can be described as pure simplicity and functional architecture....
- but since they were both residential buildings which resembled skyscrapers in design but not in function or size, the sixteen-story 1 Ilica Street is regarded as the first "bonafide skyscraper" built in Zagreb and Yugoslavia.
The principal investors were KONČAR Group and Ferimport, two large state-owned companies. The building later housed Ferimport offices, but it also featured an observation deck
Observation deck
__FORCETOC__ An observation deck, observation platform or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure such as a skyscraper or observation tower...
and a restaurant on its top floor (later converted into a short-lived disco club in the early 1990s) and a small shopping arcade which was built around the base of the building, connecting Ilica, Gajeva, Bogovićeva and Petrićeva streets. The observation deck was open to the public for decades, but it was fenced by security railings in 1967 after a man committed suicide by jumping off it and landing on a woman passing by, who was also killed.
On 29 November 1970 (Yugoslav Republic Day), political activists Zvonko
Zvonko Bušić
Zvonko Bušić is a Croatian emigrant known for hijacking TWA Flight 355 in September 1976. He was subsequently convicted of air piracy, spending 32 years in prison before being released on parole in July 2008.-Background:...
and Julienne Bušić
Julienne Busic
Julienne Bušić is an American terrorist and the wife of Zvonko Bušić. She was arrested in 1976 after hijacking TWA Flight 355 and sentenced to life in prison, with early parole.-Biography:...
used the observation deck to throw leaflets advocating Croatian independence, for which they were arrested. (They later went on to hijack a TWA
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines was an American airline that existed from 1925 until it was bought out by and merged with American Airlines in 2001. It was a major domestic airline in the United States and the main U.S.-based competitor of Pan American World Airways on intercontinental routes from 1946...
airliner in 1976 with the intention of convincing the international media into publishing a similar leaflet.)
Ferimport later experienced a dramatic downturn in the 1990s after it was privatized
Privatization
Privatization is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency or public service from the public sector to the private sector or to private non-profit organizations...
in the years following Croatia's independence and the fall of communism, and the building visibly deteriorated in this period.
In 2001, three years after Ferimport had entered administration, it was sold for 6 million euros to Peter Doimi de Frankopan, a British real estate investor who claimed lineage to the House of Frankopan, a Croatian aristocratic family thought to be extinct in the 17th century. Frankopan had plans for a large scale reconstruction of the building, but the initial concept (which entailed a complete redesign of the façade and the addition of panoramic elevators, spiral staircases and a few extra floors), was rejected by the city's institute for the protection of cultural heritage. The project was then delayed for four years until a revised renovation plan was finally approved by city authorities in December 2005.
Following the approval, renovation was finally launched in 2006 and was finished in early 2008. The project was designed by the Aukett Fitzroy Robinson interior design practice in collaboration with the Zagreb-based architecture studio Proarh, and the actual work was done by the Strabag
Strabag
Strabag is a European construction company based in Villach, with its headquarters in Vienna, Austria). It is the largest construction company in Austria and one of the largest construction companies in Europe...
construction company. The most significant change in the exterior was the replacement of the originally clear windows with dark gray glass. The building currently has 5,600 m2 of office space, and the observation deck on the top floor is closed to the public.
External links
- History of the building at the City of Zagreb official website