Completed in 1898 in the Romanesque Revival style resembling a classical basilica,[1] the original tripartite façade with a large central avant-corps flanked by lower wings also echoed the characteristic design of some Moorish Revival synagogues, such as the Leopoldstädter Tempel in Vienna, Austria.

This was considered "undesirable" due to the symbolic importance of Kyiv, as the cradle of Russian Orthodoxy.

They wished a big choral synagogue in the city center, similar to those in St. Petersburg, Moscow and Odessa.

As an attachment they included only a side view drawing of the planned building which looked like a private mansion.

[9][7] The building was devastated during the World War II by Nazis and was subsequently used as a puppet theatre.