New status of St. Isaac's cathedral: tourist attraction or site of pilgrimage?

So far, the transfer of the St. Isaac's Cathedral under the auspices of the Russian Orthodox Church has been a closed issue. The process is to start soon and will last for about three years. The issue has caused a lot of controversy among decision-makers, on the one hand, and ordinary citizens and guests of St. Petersburg, on the other hand. 

Among the arguments for, the main thing is that such a step would increase the tourist flow owing to pilgrims and particularly dedicated Orthodox travellers. There are somewhat more arguments against the decision. They are about free entry to the temple announced by the ROC. Some travel agencies are not interested in such a concept, so they would simply exclude the St. Isaac's Cathedral from their tour routes. Besides, for many years, the facility has worked as a self-financed object. Incomes from entry fees have made it possible to continue museum, restoration activities and research without funding from the government. At the same time, the Russian Orthodox Church has already said that it did not rule out that it would use budget subsidies to maintain this tourist attraction. It should be mentioned that the St. Isaac's Cathedral will remain a part of the property of St. Petersburg and be handed over to churchmen for use for 49 years.