A residential high-rise construction project has launched on the site of the former «Yakirets» kindergarten No. 66 at 25 Yurkivska Street in Kyiv’s Podil district. Work began this week as developers started digging the foundation pit, sparking widespread protests among local residents. The plot is located in the historic center of the capital and spans four distinct cultural heritage protection zones, where large-scale development is strictly prohibited by law.
The site previously housed the «Yakirets» corporate kindergarten, which belonged to the Kyiv River Port. According to investigative journalist Volodymyr Bondarenko, the preschool facility was closed and demolished after businessman Mykhailo Brodsky and politician Nestor Shufrych became shareholders in the river port.
Because Ukrainian law explicitly prohibits developing educational institutions for residential use, the property’s status was altered through legal maneuvers. According to official documents, the demolished kindergarten was re-registered as a «virtual residential building» with an area of 2,613.9 square meters on a 0.52-hectare plot of land (cadastral number: 8000000000:85:323:0001). This real estate asset was subsequently acquired by the «Yurtrade» company, owned by Mykhailo Brodsky’s sons, Yuriy and Rostyslav. The investigation indicates that Kyiv businessman Denys Komarnytsky facilitated the land allocation specifically for residential development.
The primary legal conflict surrounding the construction stems from the fact that the Yurkivska Street land plot lies within the boundaries of at least four historical and cultural preservation areas.
Protected zones affected by the construction project:
Category II development regulation zone;
«Historical Landscape of the Kyiv Hills and the Dnipro River Valley,» a landscape and historical monument of local significance;
Development regulation zone of the «Ancient Kyiv» State Historical and Architectural Preserve;
An archaeological monument of local significance.
Under Ukrainian land and heritage protection legislation, the Kyiv City Council lacked the legal authority to lease this land for new residential construction.
The commencement of construction work and the arrival of heavy machinery in Podil have triggered severe backlash from the local community. Residents of neighboring buildings are attempting to halt the project through legal channels. Kyiv citizens have already filed mass reports and complaints with law enforcement agencies, the Kyiv City State Administration (KMDAs), and the Department for Cultural Heritage Protection, demanding a review of the permits and an immediate halt to the destruction of the city’s historic district. Representatives for «Yurtrade» and city authorities have not yet issued official comments.