Francesco Boffo

Francesco Carlo Boffo (Cyrillic: Франц Карлович Боффо; 8 September 1796 – Cherson, 10 November 1867) was a Neoclassical architect who designed more than 30 buildings in Odesa between 1818 and 1861, including the famous Potemkin Stairs.

He then joined the University of Turin before entering the service of the Potocki noble family in Poland.

His patrons included Count Michael Vorontsov and his wife, Elisabeth Branicka.

Boffo was responsible for transforming Odesa into the open-air museum of Neoclassical architecture, rivalling St. Petersburg in the north of Imperial Russia.

He also built the Londonska Hotel building in 1826–28 as a private residence.