«Not to lose the building». Reconstruction of Arkas Gymnasium begins in Mykolaiv

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium begins in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo NikVesti

More than two years have passed since a Russian missile destroyed the historic building of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium (Lyceum) in Mykolaiv. Since then, there has been a lot of talk about the importance of restoring this institution, but with an important caveat: the facade must retain its authentic appearance after reconstruction.

Eventually, Denmark pledged to provide funds for the restoration of the school. And the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is now directly involved in all the work to rebuild the gymnasium.

For a long time, the work was not started due to problems with the contract, but in early 2025, the contractor officially began work on the restoration of the Arkas Lyceum. Read more about the process of rebuilding the school and when students will be able to return to their desks in the NikVesti material.

The rocket destroyed the school two years ago

The shelling of the lyceum took place on the night of 31 October to 1 November 2022. An enemy missile destroyed many rooms located in the front part of the building. These include the hall, lobby, Ukrainian and English language classrooms, the Ukrainian language and literature classroom, and an art gallery. The computer science classroom and the principal's office were also damaged.

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Denmark decided to fund the reconstruction of the school, but through the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). To put it simply: the city's customer is the Capital Construction Department, the money is provided by the Danish government, UNOPS implements the reconstruction project, and the contractor selected by the donor performs the work.

At first, it was necessary to develop project documentation for the reconstruction of the institution. But before that, UNOPS additionally installed beacons on the lyceum building to monitor how trucks passing by affected the process of possible further destruction, said Liubov Patlata, director of the Mykola Arkas Lyceum.

«The specialists spent a month and a half observing the building's behaviour. Because lorries drive by here. Sometimes you come and walk around the lyceum and see that something has fallen off. The ceiling is falling off because of the vibration,» said Liubov Patlata, the school's director.

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

The work has already begun. How will the lyceum be restored?

UNOPS has developed a project to rebuild the lyceum and in autumn 2024 identified a contractor to carry out the work. However, the start of the work was delayed. The parties worked for a long time on the wording of a tripartite agreement: between the Capital Construction Department, UNOPS and the contractor. And then it was necessary to obtain the appropriate permit from the State Inspectorate of Architecture and Urban Development of Ukraine.

«We were engaged in obtaining all the permits required by the current legislation, and at the end of February 2025, we received a permit to carry out construction work,» Oleksii Savchuk, Director of the Capital Construction Department of the City Council, told NikVesti.

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv has begun, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

As of today, a construction fence has been erected around the lyceum building, and contractors are already working on the restoration of the historic building. So far, they have only «stabilised» the walls, ceiling and dismantled the emergency areas of the building, Oleksandr Marakhovskyi, foreman of the contractor «Monolith Centre», told NikVesti in a commentary.

«For safety reasons, we dismantled a little bit of what was hanging over. We are preparing the building for large-scale disassembly. The process is ongoing, and we are currently carrying out internal work Не потерять здание dismantling the floor. There will be a lot of work here. So we are working,» he said.

Mykola Arkas gymnasium reconstruction started in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

But in general, the restoration of the Arkas Lyceum building is a much larger process that includes three main stages, said Oleksii Savchuk, director of the department. The stages of the lyceum's reconstruction include:

Emergency works: dismantling the building's emergency structures.

Stabilisation works: major repairs to the roof and walls, restoration of the façade and preparation for the construction of a shelter.

«What is meant by this? In order not to lose the building, not to lose its structure, it is actually restoring the bearing capacity of this building,» said Oleksii Savchuk.

The resumption of the educational process: repairing the premises of the lyceum building and arranging a shelter. The development of project documentation for interior work is still underway.

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

When will students return to their desks?

After all these stages are completed, students of the Arkas gymnasium will be able to return to their desks. However, the exact date when this will happen for sure is difficult to say, says the director of the Capital Construction Department. Only the facade of the lyceum building is planned to be restored by October 2025, he added.

«Now the work is being carried out according to the schedule that was concluded and agreed upon, including with the Danish government. This is all happening now. But everyone is still interested in the end result, right? Now, according to the plan, they are supposed to work until October, i.e. September inclusive. That is, if everything goes well and goes according to plan. We can say that in October, a structural element will be restored to preserve this architectural monument,» said Oleksii Savchuk.

Mykola Arkas Gymnasium reconstruction has begun in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium began in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

UNOPS is currently working on developing a project for the final stage of the lyceum's reconstruction. However, this will take some time, as the project still needs to undergo an expert review, and then a tender will need to be held to find a contractor to arrange a shelter for the interior renovation of the lyceum building.

«I would like to draw attention to the fact that it is impossible to say that children will be able to go back to school in October. Because the second stage, for which UNOPS is currently developing another project, is to resume the educational process. This means repairs in classrooms and corridors. It is planned to make a crossing from one room to another, to rebuild existing buildings. This will be the next stage.

We understand that this year, unfortunately, the children will not be able to go to school, but together with the Danish government, we are doing everything we can to make it happen as soon as possible. Thanks to them, it is happening,» explained Oleksii Savchuk.

Reconstruction of Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Gymnasium in Mykolaiv, March 2025, photo by NikVesti

Although work on the reconstruction of the Mykola Arkas Lyceum has already begun, it is still unclear when the students will be able to return to their desks.

But this can only be considered a matter of time, as UNOPS follows a logical procedure: develop a project for the last stage of work, conduct an expert review, announce a tender for the work, and find a contractor.

Therefore, an understanding of when the institution will be able to fully resume its work will be possible only after UNOPS has signed an agreement with the contractor to carry out the last stage of the reconstruction.

Yuliia Boichenko, NikVesti