I was fortunate enough to live in a dormitory that was right across the street from Tavrichevskii Park and visited the park and palace frequently. Overall, the palace itself is in very good condition. The chandeliers in the hallway still had imperial eagles on them in the early 1990s-something that the Bolsheviks must have missed. The hall where the Imperial Duma sat is in excellent condition and, as noted above, used for various government and academic functions. The park behind the palace is in good condition as well; though the ponds and streams are not very clean. There is always a lot of activity in the park.
This must have been and still is one of the nicest neighborhoods in St. Petersburg. The park is surrounded by some of the nicest pre-revolutionary (late 19th century) apartment buildings, where most of the growing professional, middle class chose to live. Fitting given it is close to the parliament. There are fewer palaces in this region-though Grand Duchess Olga Aleksandrovna and Prince Petr Aleksandrovich Oldenburgskii's palace is half a block from the park.
