Protesters "fought" for the cinema in Korabelnyi: how "Rovesnyk" was sold for nearly 2.75 million less

An auction full of surprises: the church offered 4 million, then withdrew, and the cinema in Korabelnyi sold for 1.3 million

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21 May 2026

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The former “Rovesnyk” cinema in the Korabelny district of Mykolaiv was sold for about $30k after an auction that was formally held according to procedure but left a number of sharp questions.

This concerns a two-story non-residential building with an area of 622.7 sq. m at 72 Olshantsiv St. Many residents of the Korabelny district remember this property as the former cinema “Rovesnyk”. In July 2025 the building was listed for sale through the Prozorro.Sales system with a starting price of ₴1.2 million excluding VAT.

Only two participants took part in the bidding: the Church of Evangelical Christians “Blahodat” and the farm enterprise “Vladam”. The highest bid was placed by the church — ₴4,062,378. However, after the auction ended “Blahodat” did not become the buyer: a decision was made to refuse approval of the auction results protocol or to refuse to conclude the contract with it.

As a result, the winner became FE “Vladam”, which offered ₴1,315,000 excluding VAT. That is ₴2,747,378 less than the highest bid by “Blahodat”. In other words, the city effectively sold the building for almost three times less than the price previously offered by the other participant.

The former cinema had long been associated with “Blahodat”

The story of “Rovesnyk” did not begin in 2025. As early as 2018 “Korabelov.info” wrote that the building of the former cinema was occupied by a religious community: a large cross hung at the entrance, and signs reading “CHURCH of Evangelical Christians BLAHODAT” and “CHURCH BLAHODAT” were on the facade.

In 2025, when the city was preparing the property for privatization, “Korabelov.info” again reported that the building of the former cinema “Rovesnyk” at 72 Olshantsiv St. was put up for sale via Prozorro.Sales.

The auction card also indicates that the sale was conducted taking into account an existing lease agreement, the term of which is valid until 20 December 2026.

The “fight” of Protestants

The Church of Evangelical Christians “Blahodat” is a Protestant community of the Pentecostal direction. Evangelical Christians in Ukraine belong to the Protestant milieu, and the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Christians unites communities of this direction.

The second auction participant — FE “Vladam” — is formally a farm enterprise. However, its founder Adam Melnyk is mentioned in public sources as a member of the department of Christian entrepreneurs of the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Christians. In addition, on the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Christians website he appears in the context of a Christian entrepreneurs’ conference in Mykolaiv.

So legally “Blahodat” and “Vladam” are different participants. But both have ties to the same Protestant environment — Evangelical Christians. That is why the situation with their “competition” for the former cinema requires a separate explanation.

How the bidding went

According to the auction protocol, FE “Vladam” initially submitted a sealed price offer of ₴1,250,255. The church “Blahodat” submitted a much higher offer — ₴4,050,378.

During three rounds “Vladam” gradually raised its bid: first to ₴1,262,255, then to ₴1,300,000, and in the final round to ₴1,315,000. “Blahodat” raised its bid in the second round to ₴4,062,378 and stayed at that amount.

After the auction ended the highest participant should have been “Blahodat”. But due to refusal to sign the documents it withdrew from the procedure, and the winner became the second participant — FE “Vladam”.

The difference — almost ₴2.75 million

The final bid of “Blahodat” was ₴4,062,378. The final bid of “Vladam” was ₴1,315,000. The difference between them is ₴2,747,378.

In other words, after the highest participant’s refusal the city sold the building for an amount that is almost 3.1 times lower than the highest offer at the auction.

“Vladam” itself raised its initial offer by only ₴64,745: from ₴1,250,255 to ₴1,315,000. Thus its real “fight” for the lot was limited to increasing the price by approximately 5.18% from its own starting bid.

Winners’ refusal to sign is not an isolated case in city auctions

The situation where a participant gives the highest bid and then refuses to sign documents or fails to pay is not unique to this lot. In Prozorro.Sales one can find other auctions organized by the Department of Municipal Property of the Mykolaiv City Council where participants were disqualified after high bids.

Another example is the auction for a non-residential premises at 53/1-k Kosmonavtiv St. in Mykolaiv. There a participant with an offer of ₴650,001 was disqualified after an act of refusal to sign the protocol, and the winner became another participant with an offer of ₴122,500.

Thus the mechanism “high bid — refusal — transfer to the next participant” does indeed occur in city council auctions. The question is whether these are random payment failures, or a convenient tool that allows formally competitive bidding but in fact transfers property to another participant at a much lower price.

Why this lot looks particularly sensitive

In the case of “Rovesnyk” it is alarming not only that “Blahodat” refused to sign documents. Several circumstances coincided here.

First, there were only two participants in the auction. Second, the highest bid was made by the church that had been connected with this building for many years. Third, after its refusal the property went to the second participant for almost three times less. Fourth, the founder of “Vladam” Adam Melnyk also has a public connection to the Evangelical Christian community.

This provides sufficient grounds to check whether the participants’ actions were coordinated.

Conclusion

The sale of the former cinema “Rovesnyk” appears to have been formally conducted according to procedure. But the substance of that procedure raises questions. The highest bid was made by the Protestant church “Blahodat”, which had been associated with this building for many years. After its refusal to sign documents the property passed to FE “Vladam” — an entity whose founder is also mentioned in public sources as a representative of the community of Christian entrepreneurs of the Ukrainian Church of Evangelical Christians.

As a result, the former cinema in the Korabelny district was sold not for ₴4.062 million, but for ₴1.315 million excluding VAT. The difference is almost ₴2.75 million.

That is why this story requires not just a formal explanation, but a full investigation: whether this was an ordinary winner’s refusal of the deal, or part of a broader practice through which Mykolaiv’s municipal property may be transferred to “preferred” buyers at significantly lower prices.

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