In Irkutsk the Higher Military Engineering School has been closed and moved to Voronezh, and now the main question is the fate of the freed 97 hectare site. Entrepreneurs are already claiming it, regional authorities propose a new school, while the military are considering two special purpose brigades. Which option will win is still unknown, and that makes the situation especially tense and interesting.
The military reform is moving across Russia in “broad strides.” Of the 64 military higher education institutions, only 10 are planned to be retained. And so the Irkutsk Higher Military Engineering School has ceased to exist. Despite public dissatisfaction, protests, and a hunger strike by teachers left without work, it has been transferred to Voronezh, and classes for the cadets have begun at the new location.But the 97-hectare territory remains. What will happen to it?
Formally, all the school’s material and technical base and territory belong to the Ministry of Defense, but it is still keeping silent, which only fuels the rumors even more. The most common one is: a collusion between top military officials and real estate dealers with the aim of freeing up the territory.
It is known that several Irkutsk entrepreneurs engaged in building shopping centers, entertainment venues, and residential buildings are already laying claim to the vacated areas.
However, the regional government has other plans. Its top priority is to find jobs for 950 civilian employees and 560 officers who did not wish to move to Voronezh. Therefore, the authorities plan to establish a new educational institution here: a Suvorov or cadet school, or a civilian aviation higher education institution.
The leadership of the Siberian Military District, meanwhile, is lobbying for the option of placing two special-purpose brigades on the territory of the former IVVAIU.
Thus, there are enough assumptions and options, and as for what will happen — we shall live and see.