Mykolaiv

As defined by the World Bank, ‘A master plan is a dynamic long-term planning document that provides a conceptual layout to guide future growth and development.’

The One Works Foundation has been leading a multidisciplinary team with the purpose of developing a sustainable vision master plan for the city of Mykolaiv. Spanning from demographic projections to landscape and traffic strategies, an initial analysis has been completed summarizing pre-conflict and current conditions in the city.

In line with the Damage Assessment conducted by the Municipality of Mykolaiv on August 29, 2023, urban-wide strategies have been identified under the following 6 design pillars.

1. Industry and Innovation

2. Affordable Housing

3. Sustainable Mobility

4. Governance

5. Green Networks

6. Community Engagement

Local resident in Mykolaiv. Photo credits: Svitlana Vovk.

Housing destruction in Mykolaiv. Photo credits: Sergey Ovcharyshyn.

What are the key actions behind the 6 design pillars?

1. Industry and Innovation: review the pre and post conflict economic situation to sustainably integrate medium to large enterprises into the urban fabric of the city. Boost the city’s industrial capabilities, create jobs and support the local economy.

2. Affordable Housing: Provide affordable and sustainable housing through the refurbishment of existing buildings and introduction of new elements using modern methods of construction rather than building from scratch.

3. Sustainable Mobility: Introduce a hierarchized electric transport network supported by a strong non-motorized transport and trail network, to increase accessibility to the city and reduce car dependency as well as CO2 emissions.

4. Governance: Encourage public and private stakeholder collaboration to strengthen cooperation between city departments. Create a sustainable, long-term vision shared by all Government departments through greater investment in data.

5. Green Networks: Strengthen green networks through green belts in the city center and by connecting landscapes and water, to preserve the existing natural ecosystem, enhance resident wellness and reduce heat islands.

6. Community Engagement: Mainstream community engagement practices into the city’s planning framework, ensuring the city’s achieves its strategic goals through transparent, accountable, consistent and accessible community engagement.

Six design pillars will be applied in the five pilot projects in Mykolaiv, which were identified as key to the city’s regeneration. Photo Credits: One Works Foundation.

Challenges

Ukraine's Transport Hub
Mykolaiv is located in southern Ukraine with access to the Black Sea, making it important transportation hub of Ukraine.

People
Mykolaiv is the ninth largest city in Ukraine with a pre-conflict population of 476,000 as of 2021. In 2022, 50% of the population left the city, however in 2023 this number returned to 90% of the pre-conflict population.

Destruction from the conflict
As of 2023, 2200 residential buildings and 360 community facilities have been destroyed. Earlier estimates from September 2022 find that 45% of public buildings and 44% of critical infrastructure have been damaged.

Key Needs for Rebuilding
Rebuilding needs to prioritize the provision of safe living conditions for citizens and restoration of critical infrastructure, especially the water supply system. Ensuring a stable heating season is also crucial during the winter season.

Economic Restoration
The economy of Mykolaiv has suffered greatly. Local enterprises require restoration of their economic activity and the city needs long-term economic diversification.

Based on the vision master plan, the UN4UkrainianCities project is developing detailed project designs. This work will help pave the road for "building back better" and support the municipality in addressing criticalities as well exploiting opportunities, while engaging with the local community.

In alignment with Mykolaiv's developmental priorities, the pilot project approach identified specific key sites and targets in the city on housing, heritage and transport. The projects aim to provide tangible solutions developed by architects, engineers and international consultants, to promote the implementation of international best practices in Mykolaiv.

The five architectural pilot projects:

1. Housing Micro-District

2. Culture and Heritage

3. Industries and the Waterfront

4. Innovation District

5. Green & Public Spaces.

Potential sites for the Innovation District pilot project. Photo Credits: One Works Foundation.

Through engagement with the technical team of the municipality and an online community engagement campaign, the vision master plan for Mykolaiv identified five pilot projects, one of which is under development - the Mykolaiv Innovation District.

The Mykolaiv Innovation District will establish a new mixed-use neighborhood focused on science and innovation. It will combine the innovative capacity of science parks with state-of-the-art approaches to neighborhood creation, by creating new housing schemes and flexible multi-tenant buildings, as well as hosting a range of offices, research centers and light industries. The area will also accommodate a new science park designed to foster international cooperation and partnerships by hosting new companies looking to settle in Mykolaiv. The selected site is strategically located to guarantee sustainable accessibility to a large number of workers and residents, and in doing so, aims to promote the economic development of the city.

Highlights