He said proposals to restore the historic building would be discussed on Friday, March 19. If the previous winner of a tender to restore the Manezh hall does not agree to an increase in the project price, a new tender would be considered. Earlier, Mr. Ordzhonikidze said the investment project was estimated at $25m to $30m.

Last year, a tender was announced for the reconstruction of the 19-century exhibition hall located near the Kremlin. Alexander Kuzmin, Chairman of Moscow Architecture Committee, said the reconstruction project was expected to be completed by the end of 2005. According to him, “a quite modest two-level space” was planned – a parking area and a technological level for exhibitions.

A fire broke out in at the Manezh exhibition hall in the evening of March 14. The historic building (built in 1817) was almost completely destroyed by fire. Two firefighters were killed as the huge roof of the exhibition hall caved in.

“After the fire, the project remained essentially the same. The most important change is a different type of the roof,” Mr. Kuzmin noted.

Criminal proceedings have been started under Article 109 (causing of death through negligence) and Article 168 of the Russian Criminal Code (causing destruction or damage to property through negligence).