Kyiv residents fear that the city is concealing its intention to use the existing zoo for development behind its renovation.
The old zoo is being renovated, and construction of a new one will begin outside the capital—this news was recently shared by Dmytro Belotserkovets, a member of parliament and advisor to the Kyiv mayor. The Kyiv Zoological Park, located near the Politekhnichesky Instytut metro station, is promised to be renovated by 2019. The preliminary reconstruction budget is 300 million hryvnias, and technical documentation is planned for this year. The concept for the new zoo was developed by volunteers, so not a penny from the city treasury was spent.
Construction of the new zoo will begin in 2017, although city officials haven't specified the exact location. The design will be completed this year, and construction of the first phase will begin next year, stated Dmitry Belotserkovets. He added that the new zoo will be financed by redistributing budget funds allocated for the reconstruction of the old one. It seems odd to split one budget between two zoos. Moreover, Kyiv residents fear that under such a pretext, the old zoo will simply be evicted and the land given over to development.
Photo contest 2010
Timchenko Mikola. Pelicans
A CONVENIENT PLACE FOR GUESTS AND… BUSINESS
The existing zoological park isn't perfect. For a long time, it changed directors like gloves due to their involvement in money laundering. Activists complained about the poor animal welfare conditions, the appalling state of some enclosures, and the poorly maintained grounds, with 14 of the 34 hectares in disrepair. The new director, Kirill Trantin, has set a course for correcting these mistakes. Today, the zoo is at least not associated with high-profile scandals involving animal deaths, poor-quality feed, or management financial mismanagement. Much work remains, and while the planned renovations would have been helpful, they have also raised concerns among Kyiv residents. "It's not hard to guess that the new zoo will be built somewhere in Belichi or Pushcha-Voditsa, and the 'old' one, located in the city center, will be demolished at Kyiv residents' expense, and the land will be given to a developer," city residents are commenting online on the news of the zoo's likely relocation.
Photo by Veronica Borkovskaya, July 18, 2011, Zoo
The zoo is truly conveniently located for visitors and a lucrative prospect for developers. A year ago, local residents and activists protested outside the zoo to prevent city authorities from allowing the construction of a 25-story building at 32 Shulyavskaya Street. Construction began 20 meters from the zoo's fence, effectively within its sanitary zone. This caused cracks to appear in the neighboring building. Activists also complained that the developer's lease on the land had expired and asked law enforcement agencies and the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate to investigate. The building was constructed by the municipal enterprise "Zhitloinvestbud-UKB," whose director... Vyacheslav Nepop He insisted on the legality of the construction. However, activists feared that the investor would not stop at one high-rise, and that residents of the new building, citing unpleasant odors from the animals, would begin demanding the zoo be relocated outside the city limits.
LONG-TERM PLANS OF DEVELOPERS
In the summer of 2014, at a meeting of the Kyiv City Council's standing commission on urban development, architecture, and land use, the issue of relocating the zoological park outside the city center was discussed. The land was slated for use as an entertainment center. This issue was lobbied for by commission members with ties to the construction industry. After this information was released to the media, the city began denying these plans.
Photo by Ruslan Kanyuka, November 15, 2010, Kyiv Zoo
"Plans to develop this area have been around for a long time," comments Ivan Sikora, an expert on budget and anti-corruption policy at the Open Society Foundation. "Of course, there's a risk that when the new zoo is built, the old one will be at risk. But where are they planning to build it? This seems like an attempt to sell Kyiv residents information, and maybe it will go through. Most likely, it will be the Kyiv region, since the existing general plan envisaged Kyiv's development at the expense of the region, but it turns out that the land has already been divided into shares and developed. Or the scheme is this: the developer who wants to build this new zoo will do so, and in exchange, they will receive the land with the current zoo."
"The ground is being prepared for the destruction of the zoo"
As Dmytro Belotserkovets notes, there has indeed been much speculation about the zoo over the past two years, which is being addressed by a new development concept. As a reminder, its implementation requires 300 million hryvnias. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko is inviting philanthropists to participate in the zoo's renovation through the "Future Kyiv" Foundation. He also promises transparent and open tenders. However, before embarking on such an initiative, the city should have consulted Kyiv residents: do they want a new zoo or a renovated one? After all, there are several private zoos outside Kyiv, and accessing them is difficult without private transportation, and the prices are significantly higher than those at the municipal zoo, albeit for a different level of service.
Photo by Veronica Borkovskaya, July 18, 2011, Zoo
According to Vitaly Chernyakhivsky, coordinator of the public campaign "Save Kyiv Forum," the city is using the zoo news to gauge Kyiv residents' opinions. "This information is used to test public reaction and see if there will be a response. If society hasn't reacted to the construction of a high-rise building 20 meters from the fence, then it's safe to continue building," says Chernyakhivsky. "The authorities want to pretend to be building a new building, financed by the city budget, while demolishing everything here for development. But these aren't just animals; they're trees too—a fully-fledged park. So what's the need to build a new zoo? Who will go there? What's the need for reconstruction? If the pavilions need to be renovated, then do it. This is paving the way for the destruction of the zoo in central Kyiv."
Inna Likhovid, "Day" No. 156-157, (2016)
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