Bucharest mayor Nicușor Dan recently stated that conservation and protection works at Hanul Solacolu are continuing with a focus on the first-floor level of the main building and the installation of the first beams that will support the temporary roof.

The building dating back to 1859 is one of the capital’s iconic buildings, and was built by the Solacoglu brothers, merchants from Svishtov, Bulgaria, who settled in Wallachia. The exterior facade featured shops that opened onto the most commercial street of Bucharest: Calea Moșilor. The inn was home to Lyuben Karavelov, a leader of the Bulgarian revolutionary emigration, on the eve of the Russo-Romanian-Turkish War of 1877-1878, in which Bulgarian volunteers also participated.

The building was damaged by a fire during World War II but retained its residential function until the late 1980s. At that time, however, it faced the threat of demolition. In 1997, the inn was owned by the General City Hall and was included in the National Restoration Plan for the rehabilitation of the historic center. 

"The teams of the Bucharest Municipal Building Trust have raised the structure to the first-floor level of the main building and have started installing the first beams that will support the temporary roof. For the other parts of the building, work was carried out to remove debris and install metal support elements in the basement and on the ground floor," Nicușor Dan wrote on Facebook. 

The city official also stated that deteriorated wooden and sheet metal construction elements which could have posed a risk were removed. Hanul Solacolu can be found on Calea Moșilor at the corner with Paleologu Street. 

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Nicusor Dan video capture on Facebook)