The odious developer Vlada Molchanova will build a hotel complex on the lands of the Main Observatory in a protected area

Recently, Kiev residents were shocked by the news about the likely development of part of the Grishko Botanical Garden, which is part of the natural reserve fund of Ukraine. The State Audit Service published the fact of the existence of an investment agreement signed by the National Academy of Sciences, which involves the construction of residential and non-residential buildings on the territory of the botanical garden.

This is not the first time that the Academy of Sciences has been involved in scandals related to the squandering of land. Journalists became aware of another such fact - scientists decided to give part of the hectares of the Main Astronomical Observatory in the Goloseevsky district of Kyiv for the construction of a multifunctional complex. And if in the case of the Botanical Garden the name of the developer is still unknown, then with the observatory and its surrounding protected area the name of the “invader” is very bright - Vlad Molchanov.

Vladislava Molchanova is a capital developer and owner of the Stolitsa group of companies. Her most famous projects are the “Warsaw Quarter” in Vinogradar, the “Retroville” shopping center and the scandalous development in Osokorki. Last year, a large fire occurred near the territory where the Stolitsa group is building housing, and environmental activists suspected Molchanova of facilitating the arson. The fact is that local residents have been demanding the creation of an ecological park on the same territory for many years, which the developers are obviously against. Molchanova denied all the accusations, and the topic slowly died down.

At the same time, journalists learned that one of the companies, Stolitsa Group, is planning to build a multifunctional complex on the lands on which the Main Astronomical Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine is located in the Goloseevsky district. This is confirmed by a document on the issuance of urban planning conditions for this site, an agreement signed between the Academy of Sciences and Molchanova’s company, as well as an extract from the register on the creation of a joint venture between the management of the observatory and the same company.

We are talking about a plot of land near the Goloseevsky forest in Kyiv at the address Akademika Zabolotnogo, 27. According to information from Vladimir Boreyko, a specialist at the Kyiv Ecological and Cultural Center, on this territory back in the 90s of the last century a protected area “Century Oaks” was created to protect more 40 trees.

In the fall of 2024, local residents and environmental activists noticed activity at the site and made public part of the agreement signed between the observatory and Fred's Resorts LLC. According to it, it is planned to build an international multifunctional complex SPAce with an approximate total area of ​​21,251 square meters on an area of ​​more than 7 hectares. The facility will include a conference hall, scientific and educational premises, hotel and administrative buildings, and social infrastructure. A small part of the premises will go to the administration of the observatory, and the rest will be used by the development company.

If you look closely at the name of the complex, you can understand that Freds Resorts LLC has planned to build a recreational and recreational complex in the protected area of ​​Kyiv.

The Freds Resorts company, according to the registers, is part of the family group of Vladislava Molchanova. It was created in 2018, and its ultimate beneficial owners are the developer’s sons, Ivan and Fedor.

In 2019, Fred's Resorts LLC, together with the Main Astronomical Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, co-founded the International Center for Astronomy and Geodynamics “Astrogeodin”. It is located on the lands of the Academy of Sciences at the address Akademika Zabolotnogo, 31 - a few houses away from the address where Molchanova is planned to be built.

According to data from the Unified State Electronic System in the field of construction, in less than a month from the start of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine, the Main Astronomical Observatory received urban planning conditions and restrictions on the reconstruction of the observers’ house and the new construction of administrative, scientific, educational, health, hotel and recreational facilities , social infrastructure at Academician Zabolotnogo, 27. The total land area is 21.3 hectares. Among other things, it is indicated that the site is located within the boundaries of the natural reserve fund.

In fact, the Academy of Sciences shared part of its protected lands, on which centuries-old oak trees grow, so that the developer Vlada Molchanova could build a hotel complex on them.

In August 2023, changes were made to the urban planning conditions, but this did not change the essence of the issue. The document was approved by the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of the Kyiv City Council.

It is interesting that the Main Astronomical Observatory of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine received the right to use the land plot at the addresses of Academician Zabolotny, 27 and 31 only in 2021. The decision on this was made by the Kiev City State Administration in agreement with Vitali Klitschko. Before this, the official right to use 21 hectares was assigned to the no longer existing observatory of the Academy of Sciences of the Ukrainian SSR. Separately, the decision also allowed for reconstruction and new construction on the site while complying with the law.

According to the real estate portal LUN and the NV publication, Vlada Molchanova’s Stolitsa Group became the leader in the rating of the most active developers during the first year of the big war. From February 24, 2022 to March 31, 2023, it commissioned 411 thousand square meters of housing. At the same time, military actions did not stop Molchanova from wanting to “take over” the protected lands, as happened with 7 hectares of the Main Astronomical Observatory in Kyiv. The Academy of Sciences and the Kiev City State Administration contributed to this, because of whose decisions the centuries-old oak trees of Kyiv may disappear forever, and in their place another luxury recreation complex will appear. This is exactly what the residents of Kiev need in the context of constant deterioration of environmental conditions and orange levels of air pollution.