Agrinio: The restoration of the historic “Papapetrou Tobacco Stores” is progressing

The restoration process of the Papapetrou Tobacco Stores in Agrinio is progressing as the Central Council of Newer Monuments has unanimously given a positive opinion on the studies of architecture, statics and electro-mechanical installations related to the restoration of the building – property of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 2001 – in order to host the Timeless Museum of Etoloakarnania and places of cultural events.

The project is part of the Regional Operational Program of Western Greece-ESPA 2014-2020″, with a budget of 3,572,560 euros.

The “Afon Papetrou” warehouse building is located on a plot of land of 4,609 sq.m., at the junction of Palamas and Mavili streets in Agrinio. It is classified as a historic preserved monument with a protection zone at the boundaries of the property of the plot.

The tobacco warehouses of the Papapetrou Brothers are one of the most important examples of interwar architecture and is an important part of the city’s history. It stands out for its imposing dimensions, as its length reaches 67 meters and its width 37.

It was erected in 1923according to an inscription on the facade of the building, and functioned with various uses (during the Occupation they were used as prisons) until the year 1980 when it was abandoned.

It is a four-story building with a semi-basement. Elements of German influence are combined in its facades Art Nouveau and decorative elements Art Deco.

The shape of the building is a rectangular parallelogram with two entrances in the middle of the long sides. On the first and third floors were the tobacco processing areas. The semi-basement, second and fourth floors were smoke storage areas. At the corners of the central atrium, four staircases lead respectively to four rooms per floor, which communicate, each two, with interior doors.

The existing building erected for the processing and storage of tobacco has a particular functional symmetrical arrangement determined by the main building, static and morphological elements of the interior space.

The objectives of the study are the repair and modernization of the building and the surrounding area, the preservation of the morphology and characteristics of the monument, the highlighting of the building and the industrial architecture of the time through the reuse and functional zoning of the cultural uses.

The Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, said: “Culture is a development tool that empowers every local community. The Papapetrou Tobacco Warehouse building, a declared monument and property of the Ministry of the Interior, is directly connected to the economic life of Agrinio. At the same time, however, it is important for the study of the history of architecture as an interesting case of the influence of foreign currents in the Greek space, especially in buildings built by Greek businessmen. In the framework of the Programming Agreement, according to which the financing of the study has been included in the PEP of Western Greece 2014-2020, the building of the Tobacco Warehouses, with an area of ​​6,500 sq.m., is going to host the Chronological Museum of Etoloakarnania, with a special section on the history of tobacco, as well as event spaces. A perennial request of the city is the utilization of these Tobacco Warehouses. With the approval of the studies, the first step is taken. An extremely interesting architectural complex is being saved and revived with a new use. I want to thank the Regional Governor of Western Greece, Nektarios Farmakis, for the excellent cooperation and for the immediate inclusion of the project in the resources of the current NSRF of the Region. Our goal is to start the implementation of the project in the framework of the 2021-2027 financial period”.