Street Formation
The street originated as Lower and Upper Horonshchyzna Gasse, belonging to Field Hetman Andrzej Potocki. In 1871, they were merged into Horonshchyzna.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the street belonged to the Roman Catholic parish of St. Nicholas. In 1940, it was renamed Tchaikovsky Street, and during the German occupation, it bore the names Horonshchyzna and Zu der Hohengasse. After 1944, it reverted to Tchaikovsky Street.
In 1963, Citadelna Street was incorporated into it. In 2022, the street was divided: the section from Shevchenko Avenue to Stefanik Street was renamed Myroslav Skoryk Street, and the part from Stefanik Street to the Citadel became Citadelna Street again.
Builders and Styles
The building at 6 Myroslav Skoryk Street was constructed by the building cooperative of Michał Ulam and Zygmunt Kędzierski according to the design by Tadeusz Obmiński in the early ornamental Art Nouveau style between 1904–1905.
Who was the owner?
The building was erected for attorney Adolf Segal.
What does the building look like?
Located at the corner of Shevchenko Avenue and Tchaikovsky Street, the building is an important architectural landmark featuring Art Nouveau facades and a prominent corner dome. It contrasts with neighboring low-rise buildings of late classicism and historicism, as well as a modern skyscraper, yet harmoniously fits into the ensemble of other Art Nouveau buildings.
Initially designed as a tenement with residential and office spaces, the building partially retains this function. The ground floor houses a grocery store, while the upper floors accommodate offices, including trade union organizations.
The building has four floors, an oriel window, and side wings. The entrance from Tchaikovsky Street leads to a spacious vestibule, and the floor plan is L-shaped. Rooms on each floor face the main facade, while auxiliary spaces overlook the courtyard.
Facades are decorated with floral motifs, and windows vary from rectangular to circular and arched shapes. The oriel window stands out with large windows, balconies feature metal railings, and the roof is pitched with a dome.
The interior retains the original layout, featuring a spacious staircase adorned with marble. The owner’s office on the second floor, situated in the oriel window, impresses with stucco decorations and stained glass.
Interesting Facts
Shevchenko Avenue has been known since the 18th century as St. John (Jan) Street and Akademichna Street. Reconstruction began in 1886, adding a non-linear boulevard and replacing old buildings with new ones in historicism, Art Nouveau, and functionalism styles. In 1902, Alexander Vixel’s tenement was constructed, and a new building was designed for Adolf Segal on the adjacent plot.
The facade design of the building was approved in 1904 and signed by builders Zygmunt Kędzierski and Michał Ulam, although some researchers attribute authorship to Tadeusz Obmiński. Initially designed in historicism with Art Nouveau elements, metal Art Nouveau details were later added. The external spiral staircase, praised for its structural originality, was criticized for safety reasons.
In 1934, facade and shopfront reconstructions began. During the Soviet period, the building was repurposed to accommodate numerous businesses, including a grocery store nicknamed “skvoznyak,” which still operates today.
What is here now?
Since 2015, a branch of the “ARB” bank has been located here.
Sources and literature
Melnyk B. V. Index of modern street and square names of Lviv // Directory of street and square renamings of Lviv. XIII—XX centuries. — Lviv: Svit, 2001. — ISBN 966-603-115-9.
State Archives of Lviv Region (DALO), 2/1/38. The case was later renamed and divided into two parts: DALO 2/1/36 and DALO 2/1/37.
Volodymyr Vuytsyk, Roman Lypka, Meeting with Lviv (Lviv, Kamenyar, 1987).
Igor Melnyk, Lviv streets and tenement houses, walls, suburbs and other features of the royal capital city of Galicia (Lviv: Center of Europe, 2008).
Rostislava Hrymalyuk, Stained Glass Windows of Lviv at the End of the 19th – Beginning of the 20th Century (Lviv: Afisha, 2004).
Yuri Biryulyov, “Architecture of the Beginning of the 20th Century”, in: Architecture of Lviv. Time and Styles of the 13th – 21st Centuries (Lviv: Center of Europe, 2008).