Renowned Italian architecture firm Studio Fuksas has called for the immediate suspension of plans to demolish the unfinished Rike Concert Hall, commonly known as the Rike Tubes, in Tbilisi’s Rike Park, urging authorities to find a new purpose for the building instead.
The Tbilisi Architecture Department last week approved the demolition of the 14,591-square-meter complex, which is currently owned by Rike Dom LLC.
In a statement shared with architecture publication Dezeen, the studio said it had repeatedly tried over the past year to contact Tbilisi City Hall and the building’s private owners to discuss alternatives, but received no response.
“Over the past months, the studio repeatedly offered to work with the Georgian authorities to explore alternative solutions that could preserve and repurpose this iconic building, avoiding what we believe would be a premature and irreversible demolition,” the studio said.
The Rike Concert Hall was built between 2010 and 2012. Although construction was nearly completed, the venue was never opened to the public. After remaining unused for around 15 years, it is now set to be dismantled.
The project was financed from the Tbilisi municipal budget at a cost of approximately €40 million. In 2022, the National Agency of State Property sold the building at auction to a private owner for about €10 million (GEL 47 million).
Studio Fuksas argued that demolishing the building would impose additional costs on the public.
“The loss of an internationally recognized and award-winning work of architecture would represent a significant cultural setback,” the studio said.
“Moreover, the building was constructed with public funds, and its demolition would require additional public expenditure instead of evaluating the potential for its reuse and regeneration.”
The architects also said that demolishing the venue would deprive Tbilisi of a unique cultural space that could still be transformed into a concert hall for classical music and a major contemporary art venue.
Founded by architects Massimiliano Fuksas and Doriana Fuksas, Studio Fuksas is one of Italy’s leading architecture firms, with projects around the world, including the planned “vertical park” on Monaco’s coastline.
The studio said the planned demolition is unprecedented in its more than six decades of practice.
“In more than sixty years of professional practice, this is the first time Studio Fuksas has faced the demolition of one of its projects without ever being invited to discuss possible alternatives,” the statement reads.
“Neither the public authorities nor any other stakeholder has engaged with the studio despite our repeated willingness to cooperate. Studio Fuksas firmly opposes both the demolition of the building and the absence of an open dialogue regarding its future.”
“Tbilisi still has the opportunity to transform an unfinished project into a symbol of regeneration, innovation and international openness—let this opportunity not be wasted.”
A Georgian government decree issued on May 6, 2025, allows for the development of a hotel project on the Rike Docks site.
Rike Dom acquired the property from businessman David Khidasheli’s company, Global Victory Trust, in April 2025. The company has since been sold by its owner, NGB, to Makro Property in a transaction valued at $2.84 million.
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Rike Tubes to be demolished after Tbilisi City Hall issues permit
