Studio apartment in Barona Residence

Studio apartment in historic building Barona Residence in Art Nouveau style -Jugendstil. The Barona Residence is located near the Old Town and the beautiful parks of Riga - Vērmanes Garden, Esplanade and Canal Greenery. The surrounding restaurants, entertainment and shopping centers offer the best of Riga's leisure facilities, also offers great opportunities to enjoy cultural life - the National Opera, theaters, museums, exhibition galleries and concert halls - all within easy walking distance. The space The building was erected in 1910 according to the project of the famous Riga architect - modernist J. Alksnis and is a vivid example of Jugendstil ("modern" or "Art Nouveau"). The purpose of the building is an apartment building with shops. The house is equipped with several elevators, there is a courtyard. In 2019, its complete renovation was completed. Near the building is Vermansky Park, one of the most beautiful parks in Riga and the oldest public park in Riga. The history of the creation of Vermansky Park is connected with the great fire of 1812, during which all the suburbs of the city were destroyed. A year later, the "Committee for the Greening of the Suburbs" was established, and the Governor-General of Courland (Marquis, General of the Russian and Piedmont armies, Russian diplomat, Governor of Livonia, Courland, Estonia and Pskov, Mayor of Riga and Genoa) F. Paolucci delle Roncole proposed to establish parks in the vacant suburban areas. One of the most generous patrons for these purposes was the widow of the oldest entrepreneur in the city, K.H. Vermana Anna Gertruda Vermana. In 1817, Anna Vermann donated 0.8 hectares of land to the city to establish a public park with exotic trees, a rose garden and a restaurant. Along with the plot of land, her will also provided a significant sum of money – 2000 rubles. The only condition was that the territory should not be divided, not sold to private individuals, and that the residents of the city should not be denied the opportunity to rest in the park. On June 8, 1817, according to the project of the gardener J. Schmeisler, a large park of 8450 m ² was opened and handed over for public use. The park was built in accordance with the principle of landscape. Then it was repeatedly redesigned. In accordance with all the parks of that time, and in the Vermansky Park there was a restaurant and a stage, which was then called the "shell". In 1859, the park was included in the urban development plan. Large expansions occurred in 1880, when Vērmane Garden was reconstructed according to the design of the city gardener and landscape architect G. F. F. Kufaldt. According to the project, several thousand non-native trees and shrubs were planted in the park, and 9 years later the first rosary was arranged in the park. The wooden fence was replaced with a decorative metal fence and gate, designed by architect V. Resler, fruit kiosks were erected. 6 sculptures and 3 large vases with images of ancient Greek and ancient Roman mythological characters were installed in the park for viewing. Also in the Verman Garden, as well as in the nearby Esplanade, many public events were organized. Thus, in 1927, the first automobile exhibition in Latvia opened in the large pavilion of Verman Park. In the 1930s, a new park project was developed by A. Zeidaks, as a result of which wide lawns were broken in the park, winter-hardy perennials were planted, a new rosary and a playground were established; the paths were expanded and a stage was built. The stage was a place of folk gatherings and outdoor entertainment events. In 1950, the stage was destroyed, and a new stage was built (it can still be seen today) according to the design of architect L. Stakhovsky. In 1934, a separate pavilion was built in the Verman Garden (on the corner of the current Merkela and Tērbatas streets), which was intended for the "Riga Society of Chemists and Pharmacists" to trade in mineral waters. The pavilion has survived to this day, and today it houses the Vernissage music center. In the 1930s, the building housed the "Big Park" cinema ("Lielais parks"), and in Soviet Latvia, the House of Culture for Transport Workers (popularly known as "Baranka"); today, it houses a restaurant. Today, two reclining stone lions guarding a pink flower bed and an obelisk can be seen in the park. The obelisk is dedicated to the founder of the park, Anna Vermana, and in 1884, the lions were made by stonemason A. It should be noted, however, that during the Soviet period, a bust of the functionary S. Kirov was installed on the site of the obelisk, Kirov, and the park was named after him as Kirov Park. The monument to Anna Verman was restored in 2000. Today, 10 local species of trees and 71 introduced tree taxa (for example, Manchurian walnut, etc.) grow in the Verman Garden. Now the park is not only a pleasant place for recreation and entertainment, chess players like to gather here. And on holidays, various outdoor concerts are held on the stage, and in the summer months, various fairs and festivals are organized in the park.