Green Crown of the City, Lviv, Ukraine
Best Practice UN-Habitat 2000

Lead Idea

After 1945, the city of Lviv quickly grew to become an industrial conglomerate; the population increased to 1 million inhabitants and very soon the city was faced with the problems typically incurred by such expanding structures. Lack of water, inadequate traffic solutions, overpopulation, environmental pollution, disproportionate social structures, to mention but some of them. Unique rural areas slowly had to give way to urban expansion and what used to be a green belt became a grey one. A model for restructuring public spatial planning initiated by residents was extended to include decision makers at the city administration. Once responsibilities had been delegated the project got under way. One additional objective was to sharpen people's awareness of environment-related matters.

The issue at stake

Urban planning in Lviv had no sustainable structure. Real socialism was known to have done away with private property. Private investment was now encouraged, an option which soon ended in disaster. With no sustainable urban development model in place and responsibilities not having been clearly divided between city administration, civil society and the business community privatisation got out of control and soon proved a hindrance for sustainable settlement development. As a result, social structures were poorly balanced while local initiatives were obstructed. Communication at the local level was clearly lacking and at the same time nobody felt the need for joint initiatives to solve the issues at stake. All of this inhibited a serious exchange of experience between civil society, the administration and the business community.

Possible solutions, resources

Starting in 1990, the area around Znesinnaya was redesigned systematically to prevent further deterioration. The local initiative, which was the motor for this development, also spawned co-operation with the city administration. Joint efforts were undertaken improve the natural environment, to clear the space for the park district, but also to prepare concepts for reducing pollutant emissions of nearby factories, as well as for halting soil erosion on steep slopes. Co-operation went as far as launching an initiative for a local educational programme on environmental matters. Various utilisation profiles were identified and plans were drawn up for leisure time facilities in general as well as for recreational areas for the local and city community. 7 full-time and 35 seasonal employees look after the Park Programme, which also includes an area for manifestations and events.


Process, effects

The old district of Znesinnaya had a wealth of exposed historical buildings to call its own yet at the same was increasingly threatened by uncontrolled urban expansion. The plan was to keep the park regulations and to erect a landscape park in that area. Irritated by the passivity and lack of vision of the city administration, residents of the district decided to launch a citizens' initiative as a first step towards more green space. The idea was supported by notable NGOs such as the Lion Society and others. Soon the initiative itself was made into an NGO. Architects, spatial planners, archaeologists, geographers, as well as civil servants and members of the local government participated in the process. As a further step, the city administration, the municipality and the business community signed a co-operation and partnership agreement. One of the main objectives of the project, along with protecting nature and restoring the cultural heritage in the city centre, was to create recreational areas close by and to raise citizens' awareness of environmental issues. The model slowly took shape, with the city administration being reoriented, away from being strictly economy-minded and towards becoming a service provider for citizens. Production and recreation were joined to form a functional synthesis, locations of green areas and parks were clearly defined and residents were made to feel that on top of being residents they are also citizens whose opinion and decisions are taken seriously.


Experience, transferability

The Znesinnaya Park is a pilot project for the Ukraine. Sustainability of the programme is made possible by active participation on the part of citizens as well as by allocating part of the city's budget for the park's redesign. Most recent additions to the park include new accesses, panorama view-points and paths. Children helped to create an "environmental path", and regular courses are held in the park to complement this educational line. Future projects include an educational centre for environmental matters and an open-air museum of nature and history.

KEY DATES
Landscape- Park in the district Znesinnaya
Total park area: 312 hectares
Number of park's residents: ~50.000 people
Forested area: 107 hectares
Open green spaces: 43 hectares
Paths: 4,6 hectares
Residential area: 90 hectares
Industrial area - 20 hectares
The main new constructions:
Bridges - 2
Paths - 2
Playgrounds - 1

New developments 2003

The project Znesinnya Park in Lviv, Ukraine was awarded funding under the EU Tacis CBC Funds for Small Projects by the European Commission in August 2003. The project is to be carried out in cooperation with the city of Vienna (contact: Mr Herbert Weidinger, Vienna City Administration) and the city of Sanok in Poland.

The project’s objectives are:

–	· To create economic incentives for establishing green areas and parks in cities,
–	· To define ways for the different administrative departments to cooperate in establishing and maintaining these green areas,
–	· To collect standards accepted throughout Europe and set up multilaterally valid objectives of regulation and legislation
–	· To prepare model city plans that meet the needs of all stakeholders (including tourists)
–	· To find partners for long-term cooperation (research, exchange programmes, projects, training...)
–	· To create a database listing evaluation steps, new strategies and management approaches, standards, structure, environmental protection, local contacts and international partners. The database is to be readily available to all with no complicated software required.

Olexsandr Zavadovych, project coordinator in Lviv, opted for an economic communication method as he believes this will, in the course of a concrete profitability calculation, generate a price for the value of public parks which can then be used as a basis for negotiating implementation of the project vis-à-vis other projects (which are equally motivated by economic issues) such as road constructions, constructions of industrial compounds, etc.

He is now looking for similar projects which have already carried out profitability calculations and /or have standardised methods for such calculations.

In Lviv development of park plans is within the competency of the department for “Public Works“. It would be interesting to hear of approaches where other or several departments are engaged in these tasks in a cross-sectional manner (e.g. departments for the environment).

Znesinnya-Park was awarded the LIA-MIA prize by ICLEI in 2000.


Green Crown of the City in the UN HABITAT database