At first glance, the classic mansion in the center of the site may seem like a manor house built in the old Moscow tradition with a setback from the street's red line. However, this building is the People's School for the parishioners of the Church of St. Martin the Confessor, located opposite on the former Bolshaya Alexeyevskaya Street (now Alexander Solzhenitsyn Street, 15).

The building was erected with funds from the Moscow mayor, merchant, and tea trader Vasily Zhigarev, who was also a sponsor of the church's construction. He lived on this street, in house No. 29. Like the church, the People's School is a cultural heritage site of federal significance.

The two-story building, constructed between 1796 and 1798 (the church was built from 1791 to 1800), is a monument of mature Moscow classicism. The building's facades are extremely concise and almost devoid of decoration, except for the round niches in the risalits on either side of the main entrance. The only noticeable architectural element of the facade is the four-column portico of the Ionic order on the second floor, supporting a triangular pediment. The columns of the portico are arranged in pairs closer to the edges.

The layout of the building, which is almost square in plan, is symmetrical: it is divided by a transverse corridor-vestibule, with rooms on both sides. The staircase to the second floor is located in the right corner compartment from the entrance. There are late additions to the rear facade.

The unusual placement of the building in the center of the site is explained by the proximity of the massive volume of the Church of St. Martin the Confessor. The architect or client aimed to create a small space between the church and the school, a sort of small square. The construction took place on a vast wasteland left from the estate of A.G. Orlov.

During the restoration of the building in the 2000s, its classical appearance was fully preserved. The fence around the perimeter of the site was restored, and the extreme right window on the first floor was reopened.