What enables Vlada Molchanova to act this way? Connections and the ability to approach the right people in the right positions. The extent of connections is shown by the fact that Vlad Molchanova is recognized as one of the major sponsors of the Batkivshchyna.
As for the other part of our argument about purchasing anything and everything – let’s provide a specific instance. This was investigated and made public by Georgy Mogilny, a fighter against unauthorized property development in Kiev, for which we are thankful to him. Incidentally, this instance is only one among many in the history of both Stolitsa Group and its owner Molchanova.
We will discuss the approval of several new construction phases of the Varshavsky Plus residential complex from Stolitsa Group on a land plot with the cadastral number 8000000000:91:066:0097.
Vlada Molchanova and her unauthorized construction
The construction site is situated on Vinogradar, on Pravda Avenue (across from the intersection with Vasily Porik Avenue).
In this residential complex, the developer exceeded the density of residential development specified by the detailed plan of the territory (DPT) by 2.2 (!) times. In numbers, it translates to this: Stolitsa Group illicitly constructs an excess of 125 thousand square meters of housing, and overall, for the entire site, with the authorization from the GASI, the excess is 320 thousand (!) square meters.
At current housing prices in this residential complex, the developer’s extra earnings due to blatant violations will amount to up to 4 billion hryvnias, and for the budget of Kiev, there will be unforeseeable expenses of at least a billion, which will be needed to construct social infrastructure (if there is land for it) to minimize adverse effects of the developer’s violations.
As per the Detailed Territory Plan (DPT) dated May 22, 2013, which outlined the regulations for this construction, there should have been a block with housing, a public area with an urban center and a zone of green spaces for shared use.
Instead, “Stolitsa” utilized the entire block for housing. The DPT specified buildings of 12-16 floors with specific highlights of 20-23 floors, 1,780 apartments with a total area of 105 thousand square meters for 4,100 people. There was supposed to be underground parking for 1,140 cars for residents.
“Stolitsa” instead constructed 10 residential buildings of 25-26 floors with 3,900 apartments covering an area of 230,000 sq.m. for 9,000 residents and no underground parking.
What about the 5,000 additional residents not accounted for in the DPT? These are 675 spots in schools and 175 in preschool institutions, which are not provided. The cost of constructing ONLY this additional infrastructure is more than 400 million hryvnias at current prices, plus there is a need to find a location to build them.
Now consider the fact that the number of apartments has more than doubled, and Stolitsa Group hasn’t even built the underground parking for 1,140 spots planned in the DPT. Where will all these people park their vehicles? Additionally, the increase in the number of residents results in a higher demand for public green spaces, and Stolitsa has even disregarded those that are specified in the DPT for residential development.
This is just a small part of the residential complex “B +”, and there are more quarters like this. On the 8000000000:91:066:0097 site (part of which is the residential complex “V +”), 600 thousand sq.m. of apartments are planned, with permission from the GASI for 925 thousand sq.m. and an increase in the number of apartments.
So, on this 80-hectare plot, there will be 13-15 thousand more residents, but there's no social infrastructure provided for them in the DPT and no place to build it.
But there are even more developments on two additional plots totaling 100 hectares, already being built with 1.5-2 times the DPT density, so over 30 thousand residents will live in the Vinogradarsky favela without any laid-down social infrastructure.
Vlada Molchanova – Forged documents?
As we can see, all permissible norms and urban planning documents have been violated. But the construction continues. What is Vlada Molchanova's secret?
The answer is simple. On November 18, 2021, GASI found gross violations in the construction of the Varshavsky Plus residential complex.
- On December 7, 2021, the State Audit Office again officially confirmed the violations, refusing to issue certificates for the first two stages for the second time.
- Nevertheless, GACI and Krivonos fail to take action, such as an unscheduled inspection, to fix the violations, issue an order to eliminate violations and impose a fine.
- On December 18, adjustments were made to the project to legalize previous gross violations identified by GASI.
- On December 22, the developer submitted applications for project adjustments, and on January 5, 2022, the State Architectural Inspectorate received applications for the issuance of a certificate for knowingly illegal construction for the third time, despite the obviously illegal project adjustment.
- On January 11, GASI puts into operation the first stages of construction.
That’s the whole story. And now back to the numbers regarding the number of additional built square meters. Built illegally, with gross violations, but put into operation. And think for what such beautiful eyes GASI signed the documents to the owner of the developer Vlada Molchanova. The secret of success, I think, is simple.
To all this, it is worth adding that, according to Lun.ua, Stolitsa Group has at least 100 houses built, and 20 more are under construction.
