Csengery utca 80, an old apartment building dating back to 1890 and designed by Sándor Sterk, is one of those timeless structures that evoke a bygone era. Interestingly, I stumbled upon an old information sheet hanging on the wall, featuring pre-1990 street names such as Lenin körút (Lenin Boulevard, now Teréz and Erzsébet Boulevards), Majakovszkij utca (Király utca), Gorkij Fasor (Városligeti Fasor), and Népköztársaság útja (People’s Republic Road, now Andrássy út).

Its facade bears the scars of the battles of 1944-45 and possibly those of 1956, as heavy fighting occurred in this part of Budapest during both conflicts.

In 2019, the Hungarian design studio ZED (formerly BIMsolution) shared renovation plans for the building. As depicted, they also intend to add additional floors to the structure. While I personally harbor reservations about these extra floors, believing they may detract from the cityscape, it’s possible they are deemed necessary to preserve this historic house.