The Italian One Works presented online the first stage of the analysis of the Mykolaiv master plan and five pilot projects.

As reported, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) early autumn created the UN4Mykolaiv Task Force, invited international architects to help Mykolaiv develop a promising master plan, coordinated by the global design and architecture company One Works (Italy).

In six months, the One Works team and its academic partners Politecnico di Milano and LIUC University, as well as digitization partner GISDevio, worked pro bono with Mykolaiv city authorities and institutions to pre-develop a strategic framework for the city.

Mayor of Mykolaiv Oleksandr Senkevych thanked the partners for professional and highly qualified assistance to Mykolaiv: "This is a unique project for Ukraine and an example for other cities."

According to UNECE representative Paola Deda, many international organizations and 16 UN agencies work within the framework of the UN4Mykolaiv Task Force.

She also said that Germany, namely the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) GmbH, expressed its readiness to join the project.

"We are now solving disaster recovery issues, but we are thinking how to make this project a long-term one," Deda said.

One Works Programme Manager Ana Paez said that at the first stage, an analysis of Mykolaiv before the war was carried out, including its history, positioning in comparison with neighboring cities, and the formation of districts with different functions. The problems of the industrial city are identified. Among the acute tasks are the protection of the center from transit transport and providing citizens with access to the coastline.

"We are lucky that the city council is very efficient and prepared in this (digital) direction. Our specialists received information about the transport system, industrial facilities, residential and other developments. We can effectively analyze different layers of information and understand how the city functions and develops" Paez said.

The experts identified great potential for Mykolaiv in the development of green areas and water facilities. The flat terrain is a good opportunity to combine existing green areas into a single ecosystem, create convenient walking and cycling routes from one end of the city to the other. It is also recommended to create additional small format green areas within walking distance.

Regarding social infrastructure, according to the study, the number of libraries, hospitals and food and non-food stores exceeds the standard number per 1,000 inhabitants. At the same time, a significant shortage of cultural and leisure centers, clubs, primary and secondary medical care institutions was revealed. The number of sports facilities is also insufficient. Also taken into account is information on the current assessment of the damage inflicted on Mykolaiv by Russian invaders, prepared in cooperation with the Kyiv School of Economics. A team of foreign experts, together with specialists from Mykolaiv, has created a flexible methodological basis for damage analysis.

At all stages of work on the master plan of Mykolaiv, an important mechanism is the involvement of the public. As a result of the survey, the answers of more than 14,000 residents of the city have been collected and analyzed.

The representative of One Works said that the completion of the first stage, analysis, is an important basis for the effective development of the master plan and opens a new chapter.

"There is an opportunity for institutional actors and various market networks to contribute to the redevelopment by funding the first pilot projects and I hope we can start fundraising soon," One Works founder and managing partner Giulio De Carli said.

The presented vision of the future of the city is based on six pillars of development in the name of sustainable development. The first four are tangible: green networks, affordable housing, sustainable mobility, industry and innovation, while the last two are intangible but equally important to ensure accurate and efficient implementation: governance and community participation.

During the presentation, five pilot projects were announced, the implementation of which will stimulate the development of the city: residential microdistrict, culture and heritage, industry and trade, innovation and entrepreneurship, green and public areas.

The UNECE representative said that based on the development of projects for the creation of master plans for Kharkiv and Mykolaiv, the search for companies that are ready to play a similar role for other Ukrainian cities continues.

"We will be happy to evaluate spontaneous applications from companies that feel able and willing to replicate the experience in other cities, joining the Foster Foundation and One Works, with which we approved the model in Kharkiv and Mykolaiv, respectively," Deda said.

With the participation of CFI, Agence française de développement médias, as part of the Hub Bucharest Project with the support of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs