The Afrikyan building was robbed, architect Levon Vardanyan, author of the Old Yerevan project, said at a press conference on Friday.
He said that over the past few years unknown people have stolen the cantilevered balconies, stair flights and doors of the building. He added that he had applied to the Police but that gave no result.
In the meantime, the architect negatively assessed the protests of the activists. He said that the Afrikyan building is old Yerevan's first building, which is being dismantled at the professional level. Vardanyan stressed that all construction operations are strictly controlled.
The expert also pointed out that the activists misinform the public. "In fact, there was no club here. It was a commercial apartment building. At the same time, the building is a value because it is an example of modernism in architecture", he said.
The Afrikyan building is a monument of republican importance. In 2004 the building was sold to a private company by the Municipality. In 2006 the Government took a decision to dismantle the building and change its location. The Helsinki Committee of Armenia and "Urbanlab Yerevan" NGO have applied to the Administrative Court of Armenia to declare the decisions of the Municipality and the Government invalid.