$900,000 wasted on ‘demolished’ park, says activist

PanARMENIAN.Net - Civil activist Artur Chakhoyan has harshly criticized the Yerevan Municipality for accepting a renovation project he describes as poorly executed and incomplete. The subject is the park adjacent to the Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral, for which nearly $900,000 was spent. He shared his concerns via Facebook.

Chakhoyan claims the park was officially accepted while in a damaged state: “Don’t try to say the works weren’t accepted—Avinyan was told in February that the $900,000 park project had been approved, despite the dilapidated condition. It didn’t fall apart afterward—it was already broken when accepted.”

He noted the flaws extend beyond what he previously reported: “The lighting system barely works and is already falling apart. Wooden benches are coming loose, plastic flooring near fountains breaks every time. Trees and crumbling stones are another issue. In short, everything in the park is poor quality and unusable.”

Chakhoyan ridiculed earlier excuses that previous cement structures deteriorated due to salt, which supposedly justified using natural stone instead. “But even the new stones installed under Avinyan’s oversight are falling apart.”

He concluded: “Instead of building the country, they’re destroying it—spending millions on shoddy work while the people are served crumbling ‘renovations.’ And people still cheer, not realizing they’ll be the ones repaying the growing national debt.”