More than 400 illegal street properties will be demolished in St. Petersburg, according to the city administration's real estate chief Maxim Vorontsov, RSN radio website reported Wednesday.
“We will not do this at night, we will begin the demolitions at 11 a.m., and the owners of the properties will have advance warning. If they refuse to leave, we will have to use force, but we will allow them to collect their things before they leave,” said Vorontsov.
The news follows overnight demolitions of 97 properties deemed to be illegal on Feb. 9 in Moscow. About 700 bulldozers were used during an operation described by Russian media as the "Night of Long Shovels."
The property owners claim that they possess all the necessary documentation and that the demolitions are illegal.
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