For Baku, sixteen stories were an absolute rarity, though with this building there were no prefabricated panels. The trapezoidal ground plan is unique for Baku. The architect Alexander Belokon was a graduate of the Moscow Institute of Architecture and is well-known for his idiosyncratic buildings, often made of an assembly of finished parts. Rasim Aliyev, the former city architect of Baku (from 1972 onwards) describes the construction phase between 1975 and 1985 as “Baku Modernism.” Excerpt from Heike Maria Johenning’s article in: SOS Brutalism: A Global Survey. Catalog DAM + Wüstenrot Foundation, Zurich (Park Books) 2017

Even in Soviet times the residents of the Gosstroy House transformed the remarkable loggias, using such materials as corrugated board and plastic windows, into additional living space … The Gosstroy building is now in a condition that gives cause for concern; it has not yet been granted protected building status, but it is not threatened by demolition.