Renovation of an abandoned railway station. Khibiny.

Yaroslavl State Technical University

Project idea

The now abandoned building of the former Kirovsk-Murmansk railway station is located on the shore of Bolshoy Vudyavr Lake in the central part of the city of Kirovsk, surrounded by the Khibinsky Massif.
This building is emotionally significant for local residents and is a popular place for visitors to the city. It welcomes tourists going to the top of Cuelporr, separating the city limits from the mountain-tundra landscape.
The aim of the project is to renovate an abandoned railway station to preserve the city's compositional dominance and rethink the space through the introduction of a new functional program, while preserving the memorable load of the object.
The place that became the beginning of the road, a beacon for returning, will now send people on trips of a different kind. The new railway station will be the beginning of the way of tourists from the city to the mountain route, will establish a connection between the central part of Kirovsk and its majestic natural environment. with

Project description

For almost 30 years, the station has not been destroyed, but has become one with the surrounding ecosystem. A majestic structure in the middle of a giant mountain range becomes part of the landscape, columns and walls are overgrown with moss, trees make their way through the remains of structures. The manifestation of the current appearance of the station set one of the main trends of the project towards the total museification of the building with traces of time on the structures, with the artistic creations of graffiti artists.
The use of a mirror structure on the facade will not only dematerialize the interference, but also emphasize the mimicry of the building under the natural landscape, by reflecting mountain slopes in it. Taking into account the peculiarities of the region, and the fact that the building should become a kind of lighthouse, it was decided to restore the outlines of the historical roof in light-transmitting structures, so during the polar night the building will release light from itself, become a light landmark, and during the polar day it will be filled with light, letting it in.
The central part of the building is divided into two floors, the first floor – a dark space contrasting with the rest of the interiors with botanical decorations – reminds the visitor of the history of the station, when its future was uncertain, when the building steadfastly held on to the ground, not yielding to the force of the elements of time, a light window upstairs will open the visitor a view of a new history. The hall of the second floor is decorated with an installation of the color of crystals of the mineral eudialyte, mined in these places.
From the central part of the building on two levels there are exits to the park area located behind the station building. The main composite axes run parallel to the arcs of the preserved rails and the axes of the existing ordinary tree planting.
The station is the center of the composition, giving it a conditional symmetry of the masses relative to its transverse axis. The objects of the surrounding buildings in their style and tectonics refer us to the image of the ghosts of trains that will never come to this place again. Also, the environmental building, made in a white translucent material, creates a contrast with the existing station building and emphasizes its inviolability in comparison with the changing environment over time.
The longitudinal roads gradually dissolve into the environment: the rhythm of the lanterns becomes less frequent, and the density of landscaping increases. At the end of this route, a dead end awaits the visitor – a square covered with paving stones and surrounded by trees. As a symbol of the history of the station, which has come to a standstill at the moment, as an image of this once dead-end station surrounded by a mountain range.
Virtual tour of the interiors: https://truevirtualtours.com/ru/tour/vokzal

Technical information

The preserved load-bearing structures need to be strengthened. A light-transmitting roof is installed above them. The mirror structure is hung on a frame with a hidden impost.

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