A free leisure center for troubled children in Yekaterinburg is facing closure due to the potential demolition of a flower kiosk that financially supports it. Sergey Shuneev, who has been striving to open the center for several years, secured a building and began renovations with the help of Anatoly Lushnikov, owner of the “Flowers from Alla” kiosk. However, the kiosk is now facing demolition, jeopardizing the center’s funding and future.

The “Street Children” center in Koltsovo offers a safe space for teenagers to gather, watch films, and play games, providing an alternative to wandering the streets. Shuneev and Lushnikov have invested in partially renovating the building, including plastering walls, reconnecting electricity, and installing new windows. The center aims to provide free classes and activities for children and pensioners, including sports like wrestling and yoga, and even a kitchen to feed the teenagers.

Shuneev states the city finds their center inconvenient, preferring a business that simply pays rent. Despite numerous inspections and grant applications, they haven’t received support from the authorities. Shuneev is not asking for money but seeks permission to continue their work, offering to promote the government and administration in return.

Lushnikov, the owner of the flower kiosk, covers the 120,000 rubles monthly rent and contributes to repairs, totaling over 300,000 rubles per month. The demolition of the kiosk would eliminate Lushnikov’s income, making it impossible for him to continue supporting the center. Lushnikov claims documentation proving the kiosk as a capital structure has been lost by the administration, and they are working to legalize the building.

The Yekaterinburg City Hall states that the kiosk was initially permitted as a non-stationary trading facility and that the owner received permission for its reconstruction, but it is now legally considered an NTF, which the authorities have been actively removing since 2020. The city hall also claims that according to Federal Law No. 209, only representatives of small and medium-sized businesses can rent the premises at Izbirateley Street, 15, not ANOs like the “Street Children” center. This makes subleasing to the center illegal.