Development of Mykolaiv master plan will cost ₴30 million: mayor says when work will start

The development of a new master plan for Mykolaiv will cost about 30 million hryvnias. The city authorities are negotiating with international partners to finance this work.

Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych told NikVesti during the Ukraine Recovery Conference held in Rome on 10-11 July.

He explained that they expect to start working on the city's master plan after the end of the full-scale war, as the city budget does not currently have funds for this, and the security situation does not allow for aerial photography of the city.

«In fact, we need to start with photography. This is not a very easy process at the moment, because, first of all, a lot of money needs to be allocated for it. In general, all this work will cost us about 30 million hryvnias. But, of course, it will be less during the tender process.

On the other hand, in order to make a normal flight, we need to have a safe situation. Today, we cannot do this because of some technical and economic issues to move forward. We do not see the possibility of allocating such large funds for the production of project documentation — paper, for example,» explained Oleksandr Sienkevych.

He also stressed that the developed master plan is not a master plan for Mykolaiv. According to the mayor, it will take about 1.5 years to develop the master plan from the moment the work begins.

«But the master plan that a large number of people are working on today is not actually a technical document called a master plan in Ukrainian law. And without it, we will not be able to move forward. It will be a necessity, so we are raising funds and preparing for it, but it is not a one-day job. I think that the creation of the master plan with all the sub-documents will take about 18 months,» explained the mayor.

The mayor also explained that the city authorities will be looking for extra-budgetary funds to develop the master plan. He suggests that if this is the case, the work could begin during a full-scale war.

«I am sure that after the war is over, we will, if not start, then work on it. If we can find resources for this, we will be able to start this work now, during the war.

We are counting on it (to get money for the development of the master plan from our partners, — note) If we succeed, we will launch it now. If not, we will wait until the war is over and do it at the expense of the budget,» added Sienkevych.

It is worth noting that in 2024, 4.5 million hryvnias were planned to be allocated from the city budget for the development of the master plan of Mykolaiv. The mayor's office later explained why this was necessary. The city planned to allocate funds for the production of up-to-date topographical materials and the adaptation of the Master Plan's developments to Ukrainian legislation. These works were to be completed in 2026.

Mykolaiv's master plan

Plans to develop a new Master Plan for Mykolaiv were announced in October 2022. This document should include the concept of post-war reconstruction, explained Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych.

In April 2023, the then chief architect of Mykolaiv, Andrii Tsymbal, said that the Italian company One Works was not actually creating a new master plan for Mykolaiv, but was preparing «a task for the development of», which would be handled by the Kyiv-based design state institute «Dipromisto». At the same time, his deputy at the time said that Andrii Tsymbal had made an incorrect statement about the role of Italian architects from One Works in the process of developing and approving a new master plan for Mykolaiv.

As early as October 2023, a survey was announced among citizens, asking them to answer questions about the infrastructure of their neighbourhoods and their vision of the future development and appearance of Mykolaiv.

The architectural company One Works and Norman Foster have joined the creation of the master plan for Mykolaiv. And experts from Denmark are developing the part of the masterplan that deals with underground utilities.

Read also the article NikVesti «Chance for recovery: Why Mykolaiv started working on the master plan in the midst of the war»