In Netishyn, a town located near the Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant, the construction of a shelter for students at a local lyceum has been delayed. Although project documentation with a budget of 9 million hryvnias was prepared, local authorities decided to cut the budget in half. A new tender for the same work was later announced, while students remained without proper protection for years \u2014 even as funds were being allocated in the city for paving projects and questionable drone purchases.<\/p>\n
Netishyn and the Importance of Shelters: Basic Safety<\/strong><\/p>\n Netishyn is a satellite town of the Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant, a strategic facility that could become a target for missile attacks. In such conditions, providing shelters for children is not just a duty but a critically important safety measure.<\/p>\n However, the shelter project at the Netishyn Lyceum has been dragging on for years due to officials\u2019 decisions not to allocate sufficient funding from the start.<\/p>\n Project Start: Documents Were Ready, But Willingness Was Not<\/strong><\/p>\n In 2022, lyceum director Tamila Sobolyk approached the city\u2019s Capital Construction Department with a proposal to convert an old basement shooting range into a shelter. The project documentation was ready.<\/p>\n “I initially reported an estimated cost of 10 million hryvnias. When the documents were submitted, it turned out the cost was about 4.9 million,” the director said.<\/p>\n Thus, despite the 10 million hryvnia estimate, the authorities decided to “optimize” spending, announcing a tender for 4.5 million and delaying the start of work by a whole year.<\/p>\n “We Didn’t Think the Kids Would Stay There Longer” \u2014 Authorities’ Position<\/strong><\/p>\n City council secretary Ivan Romaniuk explained that they initially planned to cut costs because they didn\u2019t expect long-lasting air raids:<\/p>\n “From the beginning, we tried to make it cheaper. Then we realized that students would spend more than 20-30 minutes there.”<\/p>\n This indicates that strategic decisions were made without considering the realities and duration of frontline danger.<\/p>\n New Tender Announced for the Same Work<\/strong><\/p>\n In August 2023, a tender for the shelter was announced again for 4.5 million hryvnias, with completion expected by October. But deadlines shifted again, and a new tender appeared \u2014 this time for 4.8 million.<\/p>\n “I was shocked. It\u2019s impossible to implement a project of such size with such financial limits,” Tamila Sobolyk emphasized.<\/p>\n Head of Construction Avoids Explanations<\/strong><\/p>\n Yaroslav Petruk, head of the Capital Construction Department, avoided commenting on the shelter delays. He only referred to “many factors.”<\/p>\n Investigators visited the shelter: it is a modern space with a medical room, decorated with children’s drawings, equipped with inclusive lifts, ventilation, and lighting. But it took two years to complete.<\/p>\n Delays = Increased Costs<\/strong><\/p>\n Project delays led to rising construction costs. The director noted how prices changed in just a few months:<\/p>\n “Prices in September and December were different. If equipment wasn\u2019t purchased in time, it became more expensive. I kept corresponding constantly, sending 10 letters a month.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile \u2014 Spending on Paving and Suspicious Drones<\/strong><\/p>\n In 2023, city authorities spent 1.5 million hryvnias on paving projects despite the ongoing war.<\/p>\n Additionally, the mayor has been suspected of negligence in purchasing drones at inflated prices.<\/p>\n Who Is Responsible? A Question Without an Answer<\/strong><\/p>\n The situation with the lyceum shelter is just one example of how local government decisions can impact the fulfillment of basic children’s needs. Under Mayor Oleksandr Suprunyuk\u2019s leadership, the Capital Construction Department was created but failed to successfully execute the project.<\/p>\n “It is the duty of city leadership to support initiatives from the start,” director Tamila Sobolyk concluded.<\/p>\n A year of delay. The same funds. Decisions that failed to ensure children’s safety in a critical moment. Meanwhile \u2014 funds went to landscaping and corruption scandals.<\/p>\n This is no coincidence. These are conscious management decisions. That\u2019s why this story is not only about a shelter but about priorities and accountability.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In Netishyn, a town located near the Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant, the construction of a shelter for students at a local lyceum has been delayed. Although project documentation with a budget of 9 million hryvnias was prepared, local authorities decided to cut the budget in half. A new tender for the same work was later […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":8390,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n