The scaffolding was removed from the building of the Russian National Library at 36 Fontanka Embankment and the main facade was finally revealed - in some places in an even more deplorable condition than it was before the restoration began.
In April, the contractor Stroitelnoe Delo SG notified the client to terminate the contract unilaterally due to the incomplete and poor quality of the restoration project. The Committee for State Control, Utilization and Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments commented that in the course of the work, the need for additional research was revealed, including the possibility of recreating the lost stucco composition with the double-headed eagle on the pediment.