Khrushchevka

The novostroika retain the panel-house style used in the Soviet Union, but are taller, have 21st-century amenities, parking, more colorful and decorative themes, and are built over a much larger area.

To ameliorate a severe housing shortage, during 1947–1951 Soviet architects evaluated various technologies attempting to reduce costs and completion time.

By this time, competing experimental designs were tested by real-life construction, and prefabricated concrete panels were considered superior.

During 1954–1961, engineer Vitaly Lagutenko, chief planner of Moscow since 1956, designed and tested the mass-scale, industrialized construction process, relying on concrete panel plants and a quick assembly schedule.

The rest of the USSR continued building khrushchevkas until the fall of the Soviet Union; millions of such units are now past their design lifetime.

[3] In some parts of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc countries, efforts to renovate and beautify khrushchevkas have been made, such as in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Belarus.

In Tartu, Estonia, the European Union-funded SmartEnCity turned three khrushchevka blocks into energy efficient "smart homes.

In Russia, Belarus, and Central Asia these same styles of renovations have not taken place, resulting in further dilapidation of the buildings or, in some cases, the demolition of many khrushchevkas .