During Luzhkov's time, Moscow's economy expanded and he presided over large construction projects in the city, including the building of a new financial district.

At the same time, he was accused of corruption, bulldozing historic buildings, and poor handling of traffic, as well as the city's smog crisis during the 2010 Russian wildfires.

[8] Many old Soviet landmarks, such as Rossiya Hotel or Voentorg, were reconstructed or demolished,[9] as well as several old buildings around the Kadashi Church in the proximity of the Moscow Kremlin.

In 1999, in order to improve the housing conditions of Moscovites, Yury Luzhkov initiated a major demolition programme to replace Moscow’s old five-story apartment blocks that were unsuitable for renovation because of the outdated technology used during their construction.

[19] Luzhkov's rationale for permanent living place (propiska) registration was that Moscow's city infrastructure could not handle a rapidly growing population.

[22] Allegations of wrongdoing by Luzhkov had been made before, but he had been notable for never having lost a libel suit in his career, including against Boris Nemtsov, the newspaper Kommersant, and The New York Times.

[25] Government-controlled television channels had run programs criticizing Luzhkov's handling of the 2010 summer peat fires and accused him and his wife of corruption.

[32] On 21 September 2016, Luzhkov's 80th birthday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree awarding him the Order of Merit of the Fatherland, 4th degree "for active public work".

He established and managed a large farmstead that was active in horse and sheep breeding, grain growing and cereal production, cheese making, etc.

Many observers of Russian politics believed that Luzhkov and his new ally, former prime minister Yevgeniy Primakov, would be likely to displace both Yeltsin and his inner circle in the parliamentary and presidential elections due to be held in late 1999 and mid-2000, respectively.

While virtually unknown when first appointed, Putin rapidly gained popular support due to a hard-line law and order image and the backing of powerful state-owned and state-allied media and economic interests.

Luzhkov was accused of brutal suppression of opposition protests, and he was widely condemned for leaving Moscow during the smog crisis resulting from the 2010 Russian wildfires.

[2][40] In 2002, Luzhkov proposed returning to Lubyanka Square the fifteen-ton iron statue of Felix Dzerzhinsky, founder of the Soviet Cheka.

[41] In 1996 Luzhkov, hoping to advance his political stature on a national level, became the main advocate for a claim to the city of Sevastopol in Ukraine.

Nevertheless, Luzhkov stated that the city was ready to provide full compensation by offering other land plots in the vicinity of Moscow for veterans of World War II who lived in Rechnik since Soviet times.

[43][44] In 2010, Luzhkov made public his plans to honour Soviet leader Joseph Stalin with ten posters of him in the city of Moscow, for the first time in around fifty years after Nikita Khrushchev's criticism of Stalin-period policies.

[53] Luzhkov was known as an enthusiastic advocate of the Northern river reversal project, which he believed would solve the water problem of Central Asia and earn money for Russia.

[54] Luzkhov died on 10 December 2019 in Munich, Germany at the Klinikum der Universität München where he underwent invasive heart surgery.

[55] The Yury Luzhkov Foundation was established in September 2020 with the purpose of preserving his memory, work and accomplishments, as well as popularizing his socio-political, literary and scientific heritage.

[66][67] The Yuri Luzhkov Foundation consistently works on collecting and systematizing, publishing and popularizing the social, political, literary and scientific heritage of Yu.