FROM NEOLIBERAL PRACTICES TO THE PARTICIPATIVE DEMOCRACY OF INTEGRATED URBAN DEVELOPMENT: THE PATH OF RESIDENTIAL HOUSING IN “LIKO-GRAD” KYIV

Abstract

Most major cities in Ukraine are experiencing widespread use of neoliberal approaches in urban planning and governance. These approaches are focused on economic priorities and the accumulation of capital by individual government-private coalitions both for new urban projects and practices of modifying urban space in areas of existing development. They ignore the needs of the local people, who, in turn, do not have a deep awareness of their importance and role in making management decisions regarding urban development. Simultaneously with the application of neoliberal urban practices, some integrated urban development projects are being implemented in a number of cities or districts of cities of Ukraine within the framework of international technical assistance and exchange programs. They provide opportunities for all segments of society to understand the consequences of decision-making in a particular area. These efforts increase the importance of this research task which aims to analyze the processes of public participation in urban decision-making and the formation of integration in new local and multi-family residential housing development in Kyiv where there is no involvement in international cooperation in integrated urban development. The authors consider these issues using the example of the new “Liko-Grad” residential development. Our working hypothesis examines the dominance of neoliberal urban practices prevailing in such areas. The results of a survey of residents, conducted in 2018 and 2020, raises issues related to integrated development, the inclusiveness of urban space and the extent of involvement of residents in decision-making related to housing and urban landscape. These results as well as expert analysis of open-source data about the development, help to understand that the residential complex “Liko-Grad” which was built by a developer based on neoliberal management decisions. The potential residents were unable to participate in the decision-making process on building and planning the infrastructure. Today, in the process of community formation, residents reveal they are somewhat satisfied with the level of landscaping and are taking the first steps to address certain issues as evidenced by their active participation in social networks and some non-systematic landscaping activities and other small projects within the public budget. The survey also revealed low levels of job opportunities, social infrastructure, poor street infrastructure, and public transport needs as well as a low level of urban inclusion. These results, together with the lack of business activities and function, do not enable the residents of “Liko-Grad” to become a multifunctional urban space according to the integrated approaches designed for this space. We conclude that the path of Ukrainian cities to participatory democracy is just emerging; it requires a deep awareness of local communities of its importance of such efforts and also incorporating management decisions which affect the interests of all residents.