Nearly 38 years of waiting: the "Druzhba" park in the Korabelnyi district has finally been granted protected status

The “Druzhba” Park in the Korabelnyi district of Mykolaiv was officially declared a park-monument of garden and park art of local significance. It concerns an area of 81.647 ha. The relevant decision was unanimously supported by deputies of the Mykolaiv Regional Council during an extraordinary session on 10 September 2026. In total that day, territories with a combined area of almost 291 ha received the status of natural reserve fund objects.

The decision was announced on 10 September 2026 by a deputy of the Mykolaiv Regional Council and head of the relevant environmental commission Alla Ryazhskykh. The council’s official website confirms that the 38th extraordinary session of the eighth convocation was convened specifically on 10 September 2026 at 10:00.

The new status is intended to strengthen protection of the park’s territory from development, ploughing and other actions incompatible with preserving the natural complex. By a regional council decision of 21 December 1993 No. 12, the “Druzhba” area was reserved for creation of a park-monument of garden and park art. Even then restrictions were envisaged on construction, reconstruction, felling of green plantations and the transfer of the land for use or ownership.

However, the procedure to create a full-fledged object of the natural reserve fund was delayed for decades. In 2021 the regional council deputies returned to the issue and supported a deputy inquiry by Alla Ryazhskykh regarding implementation of the old decision about the park.

In 2025 it turned out that the documents necessary to continue the procedure had been found. The Department of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration reported then that the city council’s agreement was already in place, and the park boundaries had been defined as early as 2016. To complete the procedure it remained to develop a project for creating the object and submit it to the regional council session.

In April 2026 Korabelov.info wrote that the creation of the “Druzhba” park-monument was included in plans to expand Mykolaiv region’s protected natural fund. At that time the share of protected lands in the oblast was only about 3.19%, and the park in the Korabelnyi district was one of the new objects that ecologists were working to formalize.

“The long road to designation for the “Druzhba” park was almost 38 years! I am proud that our term persistently brought this matter to a logical procedural conclusion, beginning with the designation of the Horizontal Oak,” – commented on the adopted decision Alla Ryazhskykh.

The condition of the park itself remains a separate problem. According to Alla Ryazhskykh, several dozen hectares now resemble a charred area. Part of the territory was damaged by a fire following a Russian strike in 2022, and another large-scale fire occurred in 2025. At that time Korabelov.info reported that the blaze covered at least 25% of the park’s area.

After that fire questions were raised for the entity responsible for the site. Alla Ryazhskykh stated that the municipal enterprise “Mykolaiv Parks” did not contact the police to determine the cause of the ignition. The deputy did not rule out the possibility of arson, although officially that cause had not been established. A special place in “Druzhba” is occupied by the “Horizontal Oak”. In 2023 the tree was already given the status of a local botanical natural monument, and its protection boundaries were entered into the State Land Cadastre. After the 2025 fire the unique tree survived, although significant areas around it burned. Later municipal workers carried out sanitary pruning. According to other assessments published after additional examination of the tree, its age may be about 167–170 years.

“But… the eyes are afraid — the hands do it. We very much hope for civic work by the city and the region. Next — first the issue of peace, prioritization of funding, taste. But almost 82 ha of city land can be turned into a place for residents to rest. We very much want a decent park to appear in the city. So that under a peaceful sky people have dates here, families walk with strollers, children enjoy childhood. Mykolaiv deserves this,” – noted Alla Ryazhskykh.

A month ago the deputy visited “Dobropark” at the invitation of its owner Ihor Dobrutskyi. According to her, this site demonstrated how a scientific approach and systematic care for nature can be combined with the creation of a modern recreational area. She would like to see a similar model in Mykolaiv in the future.

Alla Ryazhskykh also thanked the deputies who supported the idea during the current term, and the Department of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration for working on procedural issues together with the Mykolaiv City Council.

In effect, today’s decision completes a long legal history surrounding one of the largest green areas of the Korabelnyi district. However, the next question is practical: will the city be able not only to protect the 81.647 ha from development, but also to restore the burned plots and transform the neglected territory into a full-fledged park?

Earlier we wrote:

• The “Druzhba” Park in the Korabelnyi district may be added to the list of Mykolaiv region’s protected areas
• After the fire in the “Druzhba” park, pruning began on the 170‑year‑old unique oak – Mykolaiv residents are outraged
• In the Korabelnyi district the “Druzhba” park burned down in a day, and no one is looking for those responsible?
• Active young people organized a cleanup in the Korabelnyi district park
• Finally, the boundaries of the protection zone for the Horizontal Oak growing in the Korabelnyi district have been established