The aggression of the Russian Federation and the war of the Kremlin regime with the Ukrainian people brought great troubles and destruction to our land, which sooner or later will have to get rid of. Restoring cities, villages, public, social and cultural facilities, reconstructing factories and plants, communal structure, transport networks, utilities, logistics, establishing a full life for Ukrainians.

These are grandiose problems on which the future of our country, its people and the fate of new generations of Ukrainians depends.. Right now, we don’t even imagine the full scale and scope of these problems.. But we see that millions of people are deprived of housing, social security, places of work, services, recreation....

So how can these issues be resolved quickly and effectively Was there an experience of something similar in Ukraine, and when? What did this experience show

Yes, the experience was. And not so old.

This is the experience of 1986-1988, the period after the Chernobyl accident, when hundreds of thousands of people found themselves in the zone of radiation contamination (in the territories of the north of the Kiev and Zhytomyr regions), where their stay was very dangerous.

Ukraine faced the task of relocating a large number of people from many settlements from the affected area, providing them with a roof and proper conditions before the onset of winter cold (almost six months in advance), forming a strategically correct concept of construction in the central and southern regions of the Kiev and Zhytomyr regions.

I am talking about this as a participant in those events, as a member of a project team from the Rivne region, which worked in these areas for almost two years.. It should also be said that the then Ministry of Construction of Ukraine approached the tasks set quite quickly and strategically correctly, forming the main directions of resettlement.

They can be characterized by the following provisions:.

Firstly, the construction of new settlements or the expansion of existing ones had to take place solely on the basis of the creation of an urban planning concept (according to the current GOS) for each settlement, with the formation of all necessary and full-fledged housing, public, social, communal, industrial, transport zones and the sequence of their;

Secondly, such urban planning concepts were developed by integrated design teams created in the regions that worked on construction sites until they were completed, exercising constant supervision and solving current issues of architectural supervision (designing from wheels, providing diagrams, consultations, marks);

Thirdly, the Ministry of Construction has dramatically simplified the technology and sequence of implementation of such urban planning schemes (basic planning on a scale of 1:2000 with an increase to a scale of 1:1000, the formation of zoning schemes and a reserve of territories, with public building sites, a road network, industrial and. It put their social completeness under control (comprehensive meetings were held in Kyiv);

Fourthly, to speed up construction, it was recommended to use the then popular standard projects for housing, schools, kindergartens, shops, utilities, engineering facilities (there were dozens of them), which were tied to construction sites according to simplified schematic general plans (layout schemes, relief organization schemes, engineering. The standard designs themselves were provided by large design institutes that formed design teams..

The social orientation of the entire work was confirmed not only by this. I, like other GAPs of other groups, had to draw color schemes of the general plan in unusual conditions and go with my comrades to the northern villages, which were supposed to be resettled, in order to tell the community where and how they would go, what they would find in the new place and what conditions.

It should be noted that the proposed social conditions that were designed for the settlers were much better than those they had before.. This could at least to some extent compensate for the longing for the native land and the need to change the way of life..

Integrated project teams consisted of up to 8-10 people who were sent to the field by institute transport. They were located mainly in schools and public buildings.. Everyone slept on sports mats, worked with brought hand tools and paper, almost on their knees.. Printed out the right in the areas. But, despite this, each of the groups managed to design up to 4–5 settlements in a short time.

It is important that such groups were formed from experienced specialists.. They included: a leader (usually a deputy director or chief engineer of a large regional institute), a GAP (an architect with urban planning experience), a GUI and an experienced builder, 1–2 geologists and surveyors, experienced specialists in plumbing, heating engineering, electricians, etc..

The group had a driver and transport (car-booth for 7–8 seats), and they had a connection with basic institutions in their areas.

The scheme of work with each settlement was approximately as follows:.

Study of the situation by the ministry itself and coordination with the local authorities of the site of promising development. Studying by the designers of all existing conditions, problems and tasks (up to 2-3 days), drawing up a conclusion on the suitability of the site for development, making an assessment of the problems that have arisen, ways to solve them;

Performing topographic surveys in an accelerated way (sometimes tens and tens of hectares) in manual mode on a scale of 1:2000 (2–3 days);

Receiving a design task in the form of protocol decisions of complex meetings in Kyiv, endowed with the right to simplify the procedure for the implementation and approval of documentation, dramatically saving time; assessment of the possibility of their implementation (1 day);

Formation of a development scheme (urban planning concept), zoning of the main parameters of a settlement or building site (2-3 days);

Protocol approval of the urban planning solution (building schemes) at the relevant meetings of the ministry with the participation of local authorities, representatives of the regional departments of architecture, representatives of designers, all those interested in the process with further amendments taking into account the comments (1–3 days);

Field breakdown of the settlement according to the development schemes (zones, streets, plots) and the establishment of appropriate plates, their transfer to construction organizations (2–3 days). In parallel, the creation of master plans for the development of residential areas, schools, kindergartens, shops, canteens, boiler houses, pumping, boreholes, water towers, all priority construction projects;

Implementation of site geology on the building area and correction of standard projects (their foundations, facades, entrances, etc.). Most often, the latter was carried out in regional organizations that sent complex teams (2-3 days);

Implementation of schemes of centralized networks (water, sewerage, gas supply, electricity supply, etc.). ), road network (implementation of street profiles with communications and the possibility of bus service), organization of surface rainwater runoff with the necessary elements: pipes, bridges, ditches (2-3 days);

Implementation of field supervision of the project team over the process of laying out construction objects, digging pits, height reference, construction progress;

Work with construction organizations on issues of architectural and structural changes, improvement of architectural solutions and replacement of structures with existing ones (with signatures of GAPs and GIPs in the prescribed form). Completion of the construction of objects of the first stage: housing, shops, kindergartens, etc.. (2–4 months);

Development and application of standard LAFs (small architectural forms) for fencing residential areas, schools, kindergartens, sports grounds, recommendations for landscaping areas, control of road and street works.

Phased completion of construction, commissioning of settlements or their designed parts to state commissions (priority villages were completed in October-November 1986, before the winter cold).

It is important that in the future, the regional design organizations that send complex design teams, for some time, brought the project documentation to its logical conclusion, systematizing and compiling it, with the aim of archiving and transferring it to local communities, rural councils, regional departments of architecture for organizing the operation of buildings,.

What did the experience of Chernobyl design and construction show in those years? What is its significant social result?

He showed that urban planning, and, accordingly, the social content of project documentation should not be neglected.. It is possible to reduce technological processes, to simplify the technical parameters of project documentation, but it is impossible to deprive populated areas of promising development. It is necessary to form in advance the town-planning frames of settlements with the conscious goal of their organic entry into the system of regional settlement of Ukraine.

Temporality as a system that would result in double costs (design and construction) and cause problems in the future was fundamentally discarded.. In addition, experience has confirmed that it is necessary to build capitally, but quickly. Especially if the case is entrusted to experienced specialists who are ready to provide high-quality and responsible solutions in a matter of days and months.. Solutions that have been implemented without problems.

For a long time we were warmed by a sense of professional pride for the opportunity to properly and competently help our people. And most importantly....

After the events of 1986–1988 and the large Chernobyl resettlement, the local communities no longer had the need to fundamentally break, rebuild, or change anything.. The reservation of normative public, communal, industrial territories made it possible to further improve social infrastructure, build new public and industrial facilities, create comfortable living and working conditions for people.

This is the greatest achievement of the Chernobyl experience, which is still relevant today..

Of course, in the current, different socio-economic situation, not all the experience of that time may be needed. Centralized design institutions, which currently do not exist, should be replaced by locally created comprehensive professional structures, and model designs by implemented reuse projects..

You should also focus on:.

fast, but socially significant full-fledged (in urban planning) capital construction, the formation of mechanisms for its implementation - both at the state level and at the level of all involved professional structures;

application of legislative and regulatory simplified procedures (which need to be developed) for collecting initial data, carrying out design and survey work, stages of documentation approval, obtaining construction permits, conducting architectural supervision and putting objects into operation as soon as possible;

organization of the process of formation of complex design teams and groups of specialists (in the field of urban planning and architecture - through the National Union of Architects of Ukraine and its Chamber of Architecture), providing them with clear powers, legislative support.

Therefore, the first step towards a future fast and effective socially significant and urban planning long-term restoration should be the process of forming mechanisms for the implementation of such tasks.. It should be taken up by joint efforts by state institutions (the Verkhovna Rada, the Cabinet of Ministers, local administrations and communities) and professional self-governing organizations in various areas of design and construction, urban planning (such as the NSAU and its Chamber of Architecture).

This is the only correct way to adapt the Chernobyl experience to the needs of the present time and solve the problems of restoring Ukraine at a socially acceptable level..