The Ministry of Finance has refused money to save the Riga History and Shipping Museum, which is in critical condition

One building’s facade was renovated four years ago. But the last significant renovation works in the museum took place from 1988 to 1989. At that time, the roof tiles of the building were replaced. Imants Zauls, who has worked here for most of his life as an engineer, also experienced these works. He was also an alpinist and together with Teodora ķirsi, they were the first Latvians to climb Everest. Mountain climbing skills are also useful in the museum, as leaky roofs often have to be repaired here.

Part of the museum has a capar, part of it has a tile roof. The tiles have deep holes. The roof looks like a mesh. During rain, water also enters the attic and further seeps into the floor covering. Because of the holes, moisture also dries out faster. The attic floor is filled with construction debris, which unnecessarily burdens the building structures. There is no thermal insulation.

The part where the roof is covered with caper is also without any insulation. As the temperature changes, the metal condenses, freezes in winter, and then thaws again. All the moisture drips through the attic spaces. Seeps further into upstairs lintels and wooden structures. In order to avoid the further flow of moisture, films are laid out and buckets are placed in the places where it flows the most. The earlier skylights have been removed, replaced by nailed veneer. As Imants says – all the heat evaporates into the air. It also melts the frozen roof during the winter and creates additional moisture that flows inside.

In one of the archive rooms on the upper floor, the ceiling has caved in. At least 15 centimeters. This happened because the wooden roof structures in the attic were deformed.

Only a small part of the sewage, heating, water system is located in the basement of the museum. Most of them have already been replaced there, because they become limescale and simply stop functioning. As a souvenir, one such pipe, which was removed by engineers, is kept in the office of the manager of the farm department. But most of the communications are buried in the yard part of the ground, where there is a historical cover that cannot be dug out on your own. Therefore, the museum lives on a “powder keg”. Water and heating can run out at any moment.

A year ago, the commission of the Riga City Council inspected the museum. They have concluded that one of the facades of the museum’s courtyard is in such bad condition that it is on the list of objects that degrade the environment. Therefore, this year the Riga municipality has to pay an increased real estate tax – 42 thousand euros.

The main value of the museum is that the collections are mostly stored in rooms that do not correspond to it. With bad or no ventilation created in the Soviet years. In many places, the workplaces of employees are also squeezed between the shelves of hundred-year-old fossils. Which is against any vault standards. Some exhibits are kept in refrigerators, which is also not a suitable way, but there are no other cold showcases.

The windows are old and broken. But as a historical monument, you cannot repair them yourself without restorers and a project. Heat supply from Soviet times. Museum employees are ironic that from next year, the law obliges public buildings to install equipment that regulates heat supply. This is physically impossible here.

The Ministry of Finance took over the museum buildings from the Ministry of Culture 20 years ago. VAS “State real estate” was transferred to management. It says there that a Management and Use Agreement has been signed with the museum for more than 15 years. It provides that the full management, maintenance and long-term investment planning of the property is carried out by the museum itself. Raising money is also the museum’s responsibility. Currently, the museum does not pay for the premises. The manager offers to conclude a lease agreement. Then you would have to pay the rent, which would allow you to plan some maintenance work. But it would still not solve the issue with fundamental repairs, for example, the leaky roof, heat, water supply, collapsing ceiling.

Andris Varna

Member of the board of VAS “Valsts nekusmatie espasumi”

“We are talking about payments that are made every month. We are not talking about the fact that we live in a building and then we need about 10, 15 million. And still not knowing what to do with the institution that is inside. Because now we have to talk about the complete reconstruction of the museum, which we are not talking about at the moment, but, for example, if… This means that our museum would have to be moved somewhere for at least three years at some point. Because this structured approach here with savings is that we make these investments in the building according to the plan, so that this case, when we have to completely reconstruct the entire building, does not happen.”

The condition and wear and tear of the museum building has already reached about 40%, which can be described as unsatisfactory. Management and use contracts are said to have been concluded with other museums. This helps to accumulate a special fund to be used for larger works. And do not lower the condition of the building. As the Ministry of Finance answered us, the Ministry of Culture has requested money for the renovation of the museum for the next 3 years – a total of almost 3 million. As well as the money that would allow us to conclude a lease. This would require another 394,200 euros per year. But the answer of the Ministry of Finance is laconic.

for 2024 – 815,901 euros.

for 2025 – 886,884 euros.

for 2026 – 964,043 euros.

The answer of the Ministry of Finance “Nothing personal”

“Given the limited possibilities of the state budget, the requests were not supported. Several projects are shown in the museum. The oldest was made before the crisis in 2008. Reconstruction papers have been written, money has been sought. But they have not been implemented. The museum staff are afraid that the building will have to be closed due to some serious accident. The Minister of Culture offers to sit at the table for both ministries and look for a solution. Because she doesn’t have the answer to what to do at the moment.”

Culture Minister Agnese Logina from “Progresivajje” admits that she is extremely worried about this situation. ‘So I’m glad this conversation has started because it’s really dramatic. What goes into the national stock is what we are as a society, as a nation we have agreed that this is our core and to be preserved for the future. And if we can’t keep it, it’s a very serious problem,” Logina emphasizes.

The Minister also points out that the Ministry of Culture cannot resolve the issue of the restoration of the Riga History and Shipping Museum on its own. “It’s impossible,” she says. “I can show different tables, different calculations, data, everything else, but this is also a question of values. Maintenance of museums, memory institutions are questions of values, they are not things that will bring immediate economic return. But the institutions of memory – that is what forms the core of our nation and the understanding of who we are as a nation, as a country. And if we can’t take care of our museums, archives, libraries, we will have very big problems with our identity in the long run,” says Logina.

As the director of the Riga History and Shipping Museum told the program “Nothing Personal”, many technical problems in the museum were solved only thanks to Imantas Zaulas, who in his 80s is still trying to save the collapsing ceiling, pipes and roof in conditions of total lack of money.