The State Commission for Cultural Heritage initiated a joint meeting with the Culture Committee of the Seimas, which took place at the Verkių Manor homestead. It dealt with the issue of integrity, dependency, management and coping of this unique complex. After this meeting, new legal acts and an impetus for the revival of the Verkių manor homestead are expected.
in 2023 On June 28, a joint meeting of the State Cultural Heritage Commission and the Seimas Culture Committee took place in the East Office of the Verkių Manor Homestead in Vilnius. It was also attended by the Presidency, the Government, Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports, the Ministry of Finance, the Department of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry of Culture, the National Museum of Fine Arts of Lithuania, the Center for Nature Research, JV "Turto Bankas", Directorates of Pavilnii and Verkių Regional Parks, the State Service of Protected Areas under the Ministry of the Environment and Lithuanian Art representatives of the Society of Historians - more than 40 participants in total.
Last year, the Heritage Commission analyzed the protection situation of manor homesteads and in 2022. December 16 made a decision in which they defined the essential problem areas of the protection of manor homesteads and presented their proposals. The decision stated that the best maintained are state-owned, organized and managed homestead ensembles of professional architecture, and the main conditions for successful maintenance and management are the integrity of the territory of the cultural heritage object and its dependence on one manager.
in 2023 May 9 The Nature Research Center appealed to the Heritage Commission, asking for help in solving the situation that vividly embodies the problem of manor homesteads in Lithuania. The applied institution conducts scientific research in the field of natural sciences and manages the main buildings of the Verkių manor homestead in trust. The Nature Research Center itself uses only a few buildings of the complex, and the rest have been handed over to the Lithuanian National Art Museum and the Directorate of Pavilniai and Verkiau Regional Parks. The Art Museum uses the premises as a storage facility for works of art. Other buildings on the territory of the manor homestead were privatized back in 1991-1992. and owned by private individuals, there are also some homeless structures. Another object - a water mill - belongs to JV "Turto bankas" and is leased to the company.
in 2021 November 18 During the meeting held at the Ministry of Finance, the institutions that used the buildings of the Verkių manor homestead were asked to start preparing and coordinate with each other a possible concept of adapting the homestead to the needs of society or other implementation. This task, as well as the lack of funding and competence, prompted the scientific institution to apply to the Heritage Commission. in 2023 May 31 Representatives of the Heritage Commission visited the Verkiau manor homestead, discussed the situation and inspected the most valuable buildings of the manor homestead complex. The Heritage Commission also additionally performed a case analysis of the Verkiau Manor homestead in the general context of the protection of manor homesteads, got acquainted with the heritage requirements for the protection of the Verkiau Manor Homestead, legal affiliation documents, and the concept project for the implementation of the Verkiau Manor Homestead complex prepared by the Nature Research Center.
In the view of the Heritage Commission, the potential of this special place is not being exploited. Being in Vilnius, close to the country's most important institutions, the Verkių dvaro farmstead, whose size, complexity, historical uniqueness, artistic value and age census foresees particularly high heritage protection requirements, is still among the professional objects of exceptional value that require urgent help and attention. The analysis presented conclusions in which it was recommended to initiate the preparation of a management plan and an individual protection regulation and to oblige the owners to follow them through a multilateral agreement. It was also recommended to appoint one interested manager, for example Vilnius City Municipality. The role of JV "Turto bankas" was noted separately - it was stated that this institution does not have a strategy in terms of cultural heritage protection and operates as a profit-seeking company whose goal is to acquire renovated or otherwise profitable objects that are in demand on the market. The conclusions summarized that in order to eliminate the complex multilateral causes that destroy the heritage of manor homesteads, decisions of the highest level of political will are necessary, so for this purpose a joint meeting with the Culture Committee of the Seimas was initiated, which was held at the Verkių Manor Homestead itself.
One of the main issues at the meeting was the management of the complex. Representatives of the Nature Research Center declared their desire to transfer the management of the buildings, but other institutions showed no interest. For example, JV "Turto bankas", which manages a water mill with a cafe, has previously refused in writing to take over the remaining buildings of the Verkių manor homestead, instead inviting Vilnius city municipalities representatives of the administration did not attend the meeting. As the representatives of the Lithuanian National Art Museum, which is located in part of the buildings, said, the opportunities to receive financing from structural funds are limited while the buildings are managed by a scientific institution - the Nature Research Center. This institution belongs to the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports, whose representative also supported the idea of transferring management to others. Named among the most realistic candidates to manage the complex Vilnius city municipality and the Lithuanian National Art Museum. However, their intentions are not yet clear.
Chairman of the Heritage Commission Assoc. Dr. Vaidutė Ščiglienė suggested that the UNESCO practice should be correctly used when creating a management plan for the Verkių manor estate - for example, in Great Britain, management plans are prepared for all areas and even objects as needed. As the chairwoman stated, the priority of such a plan is higher than coping plans. V. Ščiglienė suggested that management plans be regulated by law, because so far this practice is not legalized in the general policy of heritage management. This could be done during the preparation of a new version of the Law on Protection of Immovable Cultural Heritage of the Republic of Lithuania already this fall.
Chairman of the Seimas Culture Committee Vytautas Juozapaitis asked the Heritage Commission to prepare and submit generalized proposals to resolve the situation and expressed his belief that the situation at the Verkių Manor homestead will fundamentally change. The Culture Committee promised to initiate the adoption of the missing legal acts, which would help to solve the current problems in manor houses throughout the country. According to V. Ščiglienė, the most important result of the meeting is the discourse and its power. Many institutions responded to the invitation of the Heritage Commission and had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the clearly identified problems of the Verkiau Manor homestead. This gives hope that a solution will be found and a valuable architectural complex will be reborn in the city of Vilnius.
The State Cultural Heritage Commission is an expert and advisor to the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, the President of the Republic of Lithuania and the Government of the Republic of Lithuania on the issues of state cultural heritage protection policy, its implementation, evaluation and improvement.
