Dispute Over Building Part in Central Sofia Involving Military Information Center and “Titan” Company Owners: A Conflict Escalates

A dispute arose over a part of a building in the center of Sofia between the streets “GS Rakovski”, “Gen. Yosif V. Gurko” and “Ivan Vazov” between the Military Information Center of the Ministry of Defense and a company related to Ivo Thug Ivanov and Dimitar Borisov, owners of the waste collection company “Titan”, reported on “Dnevnik”.

They have decided to demolish a terrace, part of the information center building, arguing that it affects their building. In March, the company (“Krasi – S” EOOD) notified the Minister of Defense (at that time still Todor Tagarev) in writing that they would remove the “illegal podium structure” on 20 April.

“The so-called “podium” is actually a reinforced concrete terrace, an integral part of the construction of the Military Information Center,” its deputy director Toma Ivanov explained to “Dnevnik”. For years, the military has been renting out the terrace for the popular summer center “Beach Bar”. A new building is now being prepared in this location by the private owners of the building.

The military accepted the demolition letter by sending letters to the DNSK and to the chief architect of the Metropolitan City Zdravko Zdravkov, warning that the building is a strategic object of the Ministry of Defense “with optical cable lines on the build for permanent contact with key departments and with our diplomatic missions in foreign countries”. Many of the communication links have been routed, the military added. The building was also a NATO information center a few years ago.

It was built in the 1970s as the restaurant “Chaika” (the garden around it has the same name), called “Home of the deceased” by the people of Sofia. Since then, only the facade has been rebuilt, said Toma Ivanov. He states this to clarify that the disputed terrace was not added later. The building was transferred by the Metropolitan Cathedral to the Ministry of Defense in 1988 in exchange for the Bambuka Cafe, which existed at that time, next to the National Theatre.

In July 2005, the regional governor of Sofia, Rosen Vladimirov (DPS), sold a 1.55 decare piece of state land between the Military Information Center (then NATO) and Ivan Vazov Street.

“In my opinion, when this building was bought through the regional administration of Sofia, a mistake was made and part of ours was defined in the properties of the one next to it – this 120 square meter terrace,” suggests Tom Ivanov.

On the property of the owners of “Titan”, the construction of a new outdoor restaurant has already begun, and the construction site has been fenced off.

For several years now, Ivo Ivanov and Dimitar Borisov have been preparing the construction of a five-story building for a bank office on the property they own through the company “A-Trade 3000” EOOD (both are e and “Krasi-S” owned by “Nelsen – Purity” EOOD – part of “Titan International Holding”). It is at the other end of the garden – where the Blue Lion restaurant garden is.