Funds Ran Out: How the Reconstruction of a School in Mykolaiv Stalled Halfway

The unfinished new building of Lyceum No. 60 in Varvarovka, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

How long can an a school that works only online keep children?

There is no exact answer to this question. It's hard to say whether it will be a few months or a few years. However, there comes a time when parents decide to withdraw their documents and transfer their child to another school. This is quite logical, because the online format cannot provide students with long-term quality education, no matter how qualified the teachers are.

In fact, this problem is now being faced by Mykolaiv schools that do not have shelters or are waiting for their turn to be rebuilt.

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60 children. This is the number of students that Lyceum №60 in Varvarivka has lost since the beginning of the school year. This number is equal to the capacity of two regular school classes.

The school expected to return students to their desks in 2025. They were promised a new building with a shelter to replace the one that was destroyed. However, before the beginning of September, it became clear that this would not happen. At least not within the expected timeframe.

NikVesti found out why the reconstruction of the lyceum was suspended and what the future holds for the institution.

The work was stopped in one day. Workers and equipment were removed from the school

A Russian missile destroyed the school building three years ago, in July 2022. One of the lyceum's buildings was destroyed, and the main building and the nearby playground were damaged. In fact, the place where children used to study has turned into a complete ruin.

The building of lyceum №60 in Varvarivka destroyed by a rocket attack, March 2024. Photo: Serhii Ovcharyshyn, NikVesti

It took two years for the school to be rebuilt. A construction crane, equipment and workers entered the lyceum in the summer of 2024. The contractor first dismantled the destroyed building and excavated a pit for the construction of the future shelter.

«The whole of Varvarivka watched and rejoiced at this start. The new building grew very quickly. We were the first facility to be built and shown», says Tetiana Martychenko, deputy director for educational work.

But suddenly the construction stopped, she says. It happened a year after the start of work — in the summer of 2025.

«The construction was stopped in one day. All workers were removed from the site, then gradually the equipment. And all this happened during this summer»," added Tetiana Martichenko.

Now, on the site of the once destroyed lyceum building, there is only a «box» of a new building — four floors of bare walls, without windows and a roof.

«We don't get visits from the authorities anymore. We have become, you know, an uninteresting object. Why?», says the deputy director.

The unfinished new building of Lyceum №60 in Varvarivka, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

A construction crane, a temporary fence, and some building materials that have been standing still on the lyceum's grounds for several months now remind us that reconstruction was underway.

«We were about to start the offline studying. Of course, our parents were told that we could start not on 1 September, but a little later. We were sure it would be this school year: October or November. But now we no longer have such hope and we can see that this is, unfortunately, a kind of long-term construction», Tetiana Martychenko shared her thoughts.

A construction crane on the territory of Lyceum №60 in Varvarvka, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

Construction fence around the lyceum №60 in Varvarivka, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

Currently, the lyceum cannot start teaching children in a full-time or mixed format, even in the old building, because it has no shelter. The institution expected to receive it along with the new building this year.

«We are deprived of quality education. We expected full-time education. We were hoping for this», said Tatiana Martichenko.

But the problem with the school shelter is deeper, says the deputy director. There is not a single one in the entire Varvarivka neighbourhood.

«Our lyceum and gymnasium №61 are deprived of the possibility of any format of education, except for distance learning. While in Mykolaiv parents can choose another institution that offers full-time or mixed form of education, we do not have this option. We were not given any alternatives to choose from. Where is social justice and equality then?», she added.

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The school is promised to be completed in 2026. If there is money

In terms of numbers, the new building of the lyceum is only 36% complete. This data was provided to NikVesti by the Department of Architecture and Capital Construction of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration. In fact, during the year of work, the contractor dismantled the destroyed building and erected a «box» new one: he laid the foundation, a monolithic reinforced concrete slab over the basement and built four floors.

37.9 million hryvnias has already been spent on these works from the state budget, according to the RMA. However, another 73.4 million hryvnias are needed to complete the construction of the new lyceum building.

In summary, the new lyceum building will cost the state budget at least 111 million hryvnias.

Currently, the reconstruction of the lyceum has been suspended because the state budget does not have the funds for it, Andrii Hreits, director of the Department of Architecture and Capital Construction of the RMA, explained in a commentary to NikVesti. Prior to that, the work was funded from the Fund for the Elimination of the Consequences of Armed Aggression.

«In 2024, 70 million hryvnias was allocated. We managed to use part of it. Therefore, the funds that were not used were returned to the state budget at the end of the year. This year, the liquidation fund was not funded at all because there were no funds. That is, the year 2025 has fallen out altogether», explained Andrii Hreits.

According to him, funding is promised to be resumed in 2026.

«I talked to the Ministry of Finance last week. Next year, the liquidation fund will be replenished again, and they will fund all the projects that were underfunded in 2024,» he explained.

The unfinished new building of Lyceum №60 in Varvarivka, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

If the money is allocated early next year, the reconstruction will be pushed back by a year, to the summer of 2026.

«The work was supposed to be completed in August this year, so that the educational process could begin, but there was no funding for a whole year. If the funding is available early next year, we will complete the work as planned only in 2026. This is subject to timely funding», said the director of the department.

«Winter will destroy it». The unfinished building needs to be covered with a roof

However, while the lyceum is waiting for the promised renewal of funding, there is a problem that needs to be solved now. The fact is that the four completed floors of the new building are currently standing idle without a roof.

«We need to at least cover the building with a roof and install windows to preserve what we have. As it turns out, the building is not yet completed and can already be destroyed by wind, rain, snow», said Tetiana Martychenko, Deputy Director for Educational Work.

The top floor of the unfinished building of Lyceum №60 without a roof, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

Funds for this are planned to be allocated from the regional budget, Andrii Hreits, director of the RMA Architecture Department, explained to NikVesti.

«We are responsible builders, so we understand that if we don't do this, the entire 4th floor that we have built will at least partially collapse during the winter.

We need to find the funds to make the roof — we plan to allocate them from the regional budget. If we don't make the roof, all the work was done in vain and then we will have to redo», said Andrii Hreits.

He also believes that the city authorities should help finance the roof of the lyceum, as the school belongs to the city.

«The city does not help, although it is a city facility. The city could also help in this matter by funding», added Andrii Hreits.

The conclusion of this article can be similar to many of those we have written before. In general, it will look something like this: the construction was stopped due to lack of funds, but they promise to resume work.

A construction crane on the territory of Lyceum №60 in Varvarivka, September 2025, photo by NikVesti

Of course, we can talk about the war and its impact on budgets at various levels and on the funding of many projects. But in reality, there have always been such cases. Often, work was suspended, which led to an increase in funding for projects over time, and this is how long-term construction projects appeared. Is there a risk that this lyceum in Varvarivka will be included in their list? We can never rule out this possibility. However, we cannot say that it will happen for sure either. So far, there is little evidence to suggest this, despite the school's concerns.

In these conclusions, it is impossible to avoid people who have been working at the lyceum for many years. Teachers say they do not believe that the new building will be completed. But despite their words, you can still feel their hope when you talk to them. You can feel it when they «hold on» in their assumptions about the construction crane that still stands on the lyceum's territory. They say that «is perhaps a sign that they will continue». Or when they show a gymnasium where bunk beds are stored for future shelter.

One way or another, the lyceum is waiting for its reconstruction and return to full school life. And the nearest date to find out whether this will happen is January 2026.

Yuliia Boichenko, NikVesti