URBAN AREA STUDY OF SOFIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T00246A026800100001-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 16
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 11, 2014
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: September 13, 1957
• Content Type: REPORT

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CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
This material contains information affecting the National Defense of the United States within the meaning of the Espionage Laws, Title
18, U.S.C. Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in any manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
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COUNTRY
SUBJECT
DATE OF
INFO.
PLACE &
DATE ACQ.
Bulgaria
Urban Area Study of Sofia
REPORT
DATE DISTR.
NO. PAGES
REQUIREMENT
NO.
REFERENCES
13 September 1957
8
RD
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SOURCE EVALUATIONS ARE DEFINITIVE. APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE.
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STATE #
ARMY #
X
NAVY
X
AIR #
FBI
AEC
(Note: Washington distribution indicated by "X"; Field distribution by "#".)
INFORMATION REPORT INFORMATION REPORT
17
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REPORT
COUNTRY Bulgaria
SUBJECT Urban Area Study of Sofia
DATE OF INFORMATION
PLACE ACQUIRED
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
DATE DISTR. 21 August 1957
NO. OF PAGES 7
REFERENCES:
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Urban Area Study of Sofia
General Information
Enclosure 1 is a corrected overlay ,! a non-standard city plan of
Sofia, approximate scale 1:6,000. cf Ia has seen considerable re-
construction throughout its business, or center sectionin the
past 10 years. Numbers in parentheses below refer to numbers on
the enclosure.
(1) Vladajska River - 15 meters wide with stone walled banks, it
surrounded the northern business section of the eity.
(2) Lovov Square and Lovov Bridge the bridge was 12 meters wide.
(3) Georgiy Dimitroff Boulevard - one of the main streets in the
city.
(4) State Security Service (Darshavna sigornostl) located in
two five-story buildings on Lovovo Square.
(5) Police Headquarters for the District of Sofia (okrushno up-
ravlenie na narodna milisia) - a five-story building.
(6) Gastronom #1 - a large two-story hall with a glass roof) it
was a shopping center for food items only.
(7) Old Mosque.
(8) Central Bath House - located in a park.
(9) Trade Union House for the District of Sofia - an old four-
story building.
(10) Government Purchasing Office - a four-story building; all govi.
ernment enterprises purchased here those items not sold on the
free market.
(11) Grass Covered Areas - to be occupied by new streets or build-
ings.
(12) Najoho Zanoff Street formerly Nishka Street; it was to be
widened and made the second main street of the city,
(13) Soviet-Bulgarian Construction Company (Sovbolstroy) a five-
story building.
(14) Ministry of Health - a five story building.
(15) Government Planning Commission - this building also housed the
much feared Government Control Commission which checked all
government activities.
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(16) Stambollyskiy Boulevard.
(17) Lenin Square,
(18) Church Svata Nedele.
(19) Trade Union House - housing the main offices of all trade
unions in Bulgarian. It was a five-story, modern building.
(20) Court House - an old six-story building. Under this house
and its large yard were an air raid shelter, an electric power
plant and a hospital with hermetically closed doors and win-
dows.
(21) Stalin Boulevard 15 meters wide.
(22) Government Council for the District of Sofia - a new five-
story building.
(23) Commerce House (Targovskly Dom) - with offices for the Lawyers'
Collective Association.
(24) Publication Office for the Synod of the Orthodox ChUrch.
(25) Chamber of Commerce - a new five-story building.
(26) Ministry of Electrification - in this block was also located
the new luxury hotel for foreigners. The entire block was
the scene of extensive construction activity in summer 1956.
(27) Promenade Area (Corso) - the new center of Sofia.
(28) Ministry of Heavy Industry - in this new six-story building
was also located the Main Department Store (Universal Magazin).
Construction was incomplete in summer 1956.
(29) Dondukov Boulevard - 15 meters wide*
(30) Administration Office for Prisons and Labor Camps - subordinate
to the Ministry of the Interior* TVO labor camps (Trudovo
Voxpitatelno Obehteszhitiye) were actually forced labor camps*
(31) Central Committee of the CP and Council of Ministers - a four-
story, modern building with a circular yard. This building
had four underground stories reached by elevators. A machine
gun tower was on the roof*
(32) Police Headquarters for the City of Sofia - its address was 5
Moskovska. Central registration files were kept in this office,
(33) Balkan Theater.
(34) New Opera House
quarters of the
for Agriculture
(Zemedelsky Dom
- in the same block was also located the Head-
Farmer's Party and the office of the Minister
the entire block was known as "Farmer's House"
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(35) Former Central Committee of the CP - now Party offices.
(36) Headquarters of the Traffic Police.
(37) University Grounds - a technical college, musical academy,
medical school, etc.
(38) Garage - for the vehicles of the Council of Ministers. - It
was a two-story building with a large yard.
(39) Operetta House - offices of the Bulgarian Red Cross were located
here.
(40) Casernes of the Guard Regiment - an old building.
(41) Alexander Nevskiy Church.
(42) Synod of the Orthodox Church.
(43) St. Sofia Church.
(44) Parliament Building - an old building which also housed the
offices of the Chief of the Presidium of the People's Council.
(45) Academy of Science.
(46) Austrian Legation.
(47) Italian Embassy.
(48) Carthographic Institute and 0 fi ers' Club.
(49) Russian Embassy.
(50) committee for Friendship and Cultural Relations with Foreign
Countries - a Russian Church was also located here*
(51) Ministry of Finances - located in the National Bank building,
a five-story building with several rooms used as an archeolo-
gical museum.
(52) Square of the Ninth September.
(53) Tomb of Georgia Dimitroff-a national shrine.
(54) Museum - formerly Czar's Castle.
(55) Molotov Street'
(56) Ministry for External Trade.
(57) Administration for Water Transport - an old four-story buildins
(58) CP offices for the city of Sofia.
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(59)
(60)
(ft)
(62)
(63)
(64)
(65)
(66)
(67)
(68)
(69)
(70)
(71)
(72)
(73)
(74)
(75)
(76)
(77)
(7a)
(79)
(ao)
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Central Committee or the Bulgarian Youth Organisation.
City Hall and Municipal Council.
Art Gallery.
People's Theater.
Ministry of Defense - a new five-story building constructed
on a special concrete foundation because of unfirm soil.
"Bulgaria Hotel" - a modern building. In the northern corner
of this block was located the Council of Ministers before it
moved to Point (31).
Ministry of
of Finances.
Ministry of
Ministry of
Section was
Foreign Affairs - also sections of the Ministry
Culture.
Transportation - the Railroad Administration
located here.
Roskiy Boulevard.
gumanian Embassy.
Former US Embassy - New Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
Chinese Embassy.
Residence of Ministers - a new six-story apartment house.
Czechoslovak Legation - an old three-story building.
Emuse of Physical Culture - uncompleted in summer 1956,
large gym halls and a swimming pool were installed there; it
was a seven-story building._
Old Ministry of Electrification - since moved to Point (26).
Ministry of the Interior - a new building with an air raid
shelter; it was rumored that emergency exits for this Minis-
try were located in the blocks Point (83).
Post Ministry and Main Post Office - a modern four-story
building.
Telephone Switchboard - with sections of the Post Ministry.
The telecommunication system in Sofia was decentralized; there
was no main frame office located in this building.
Ministry of Interior Trade - a new five-story building.
Ministry tr-Light Industry and Food - a five-story building.
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(81) Ministry for People's Education - a new five-story building
with nets of antennas covering the roof.
Ministry for Building and Road Construction - an old five-
story building.
(83) New Thermo Electric Power Plant - with a 50-meter-high ehimna.
Exits from the air raid shelter of the Ministry of the Interior
were located in this block.
( 82 )
(84) Korean Legation - a new five-story building which also housed
the Main Administration for Labor Recruiting.
(85) Russian Trade Mission a two-story building surrounded by
a large yard.
(86) Residence of the present Prime Minister - this house was his
personal property.
(87) Billets for the Special Guards - formerly a school building,
These guards were assigned to ministers, foreign diplomats,
and official visitors.
(88)
Institute for Industrial Improvement - under the Council a
Ministers. The Patent Office and the Office for Work improve.-
ment were also located here.
(89) British Embassy - located in a large park.
(90) Hungarian Legation - a new three-story building.
(91) Polish Legation - the most modern building in Sofia. Located
In a park, it had a flat roof and large glass balconies.
(92) Israel Legation - a three-story building.
(93) Apartment House for Bulgarian Ministers - a six-story corner
building.
(94) House of the Minister of Electrification.
(95) Ministry of Heavy Industry - to be moved to Point (28).
(96) Military Headquarters for city ,of Sofia - the entire block
was surrounded by a huge wall.
(97) Military Area - surrounded by a two-meter-high wall. Air
and ground force units were stationed here, as was the para-
military school for railroad and postal workers.
(98) Perlovska River - 15 meters wide, with stone walled banks.
(99) Radio Sofia House - a new five-story building.
(100) Area of the Technical College.
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(101) Agricultural University and Research Institute.
(102) Transformer and Distributor Station - for the southern dis-
trict of Sofia, it was called "Rile Station".
(103) Vasil Levsky Stadium - completed in 1956. A new broad avenue
was bunt from the House of Physical Culture, Point (74), to
the stadium. The new bridge across Perlovska River was un-
completed in summer 1956. There were two grand stands on both
sidee, each side of the stadium housing check rooms, restau-
rants, first aid stations, etc.
(104) New Small Stadium - to be used for basket ball volley ball
and boxing.
(105) Sofia Zoo
(106) Soviet Army Monument - 50 meters high, located in a park.
Enclosure 1: A corrected overlay of a non-standard city plan of Sofia.
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ENCLOSURE I
SOFIA
CeR1.5c r 4/ -
7 y PL AA/ ?\ 6,000 FPH