Turning into a ‘Russian Monaco’: Kazan’s waterfront open for investments

Lokomotiv — start for investments in waterfront areas

“Geographically, Kazan is lucky: we are located on the largest reservoir, on the water (we are talking about the Volga River). When we meet with regions along the water, I am always told — “Kazan is the heart of the Volga River.” Then I realised that we are clearly not working on this issue," Ilsiyar Tukhvatullina, the chief architect of Kazan, admitted before the presentation of the concept of Europe's largest Extreme Water Sports Centre. A marina with a sports complex is planned on the Lokomotiv peninsula near Kazan's main railway station. It will be the first part of the large project Kazan — A City On Water, developed by the Kazan Development Institute. The implementation of the project within the framework of the program for the integrated development of waterfront territories Kazan — A City On Water requires attracting private and public investments in the amount of 10.5 billion rubles, the city authorities estimated.

Kazan has been dreaming about the development of waterfront territories for several decades. But this time, the long-standing idea is close to becoming a reality. As it became known at the Kazanysh International Architectural and Construction forum, Kazan announced the holding of an international architectural competition to develop the concept of an Extreme Water Sports Center. The terms of reference for the contestants will be developed by specialists from the Kazan City Development Institute, and the results are promised to be summed up by the end of 2025.

It's like going into space

What should a “city on water” look like and what trends are gaining momentum in global urbanism? Using the example of large megacities in Russia, Turkey, Iran and Kyrgyzstan, the participants of the plenary session outlined the main approaches to urban renovation. These are human-centricity, attention to public spaces and the preservation of environmental well-being.

“The more we know about each other's innovations and experiences, the more effectively we can use this potential. The urban environment becomes sustainable if it takes into account diversity (interests), preserves identity, and the city adapts to different needs," Kazan Mayor Ilsur Metshin outlined the basics of urban planning in the capital.

According to him, Kazan has been transformed beyond recognition due to that the city has become a venue for major international events. “Kazan has made a leap forward thanks to international events and the support of the federal centre. And now we are in a masterpiece of architecture," Metshin said, thanking Rustam Minnikhanov for his support.

For this reason, Kazan has begun to regularly hold international architectural competitions.

“They have become a common practice. But it's always like going into space," Metshin quipped.

“But you manage to do it," the Moscow 24 news anchor, dressed in a floor-length scarlet silk dress, later added.

“They just didn't offer it to others, but they could have done it that way," Rustam Minnikhanov disagreed, to the general laughter of the audience.

What does Kazan expect from the forum? “First of all, we expect to learn more about best practices and share best practices. Among the applied topics are the concept of a city on water, inclusion, sustainable development, and cities of the future," Ilsur Metshin concluded his speech.

Moscow improves embankments, Istanbul is protecting itself against earthquakes

Moscow's experience may become a relevant solution for this. According to Sergey Kuznetsov, the chief architect of Moscow, the capital adopted a program for the development of the water front 10 years ago, and during this time many bridges and embankments were built. This has made the city polycentric.

“When asked about Kazan, the answer is: “It's a good city," said Kuznetsov. The transformation of the city has attracted many federal developers, added Nikita Stasishin, the deputy minister of construction of Russia.

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Deputy Secretary-General Gürkan Akgun shared his vision of the development of the city, which stands on the shores of the Black and Marmara Seas, and is surrounded by forests to the south. According to him, Istanbul has adopted a development program until 2050, but does not set the task of expanding borders. The main dangers are traffic jams and the threat of an earthquake, and the authorities are making efforts to make life safe, Akgun concluded.

Vice mayor of Tehran, chief architect Hamidreza Saremi spoke about his passion for clean energy. According to him, solar panels generate about 6% of energy, and the goal is to increase it to 10%. This is due to the shortage of electricity supply in the city.

Bishkek Mayor Aybek Dzhunushaliev announced the adoption of a new general plan for the development of the capital of Kyrgyzstan until 2050. In short, megacities are developing in non-standard conditions. Compared to them, Kazan, you must admit, is in the most advantageous position in every sense.

How Moscow fought off illegal development near the water

The concept of Kazan — A City On Water caused a lively discussion at the panel session. The main comments to it were made by Sergey Kuznetsov, the chief architect of Moscow, and Nikita Stasishin, the deputy minister of construction of Russia.

“The idea of making Kazan a Russian Monaco is cool, because water is the main resource of cities. But Kazan is very different from Moscow. Our river transport is regular, but here it is proposed to make it tourist," said Sergey Kuznetsov, making it clear that this is more of a disadvantage than an advantage.

But on the other hand, Moscow also could not immediately launch a regular river service. The reason was that there was no need. “The idea of using river transport was back in Luzhkov's time. But you need to have a lot of points for people to be on the waterfront. Only now have the routes become active," he said. Residents use them as part of a transfer using the Troika card. He drew attention to that the river infrastructure does not work in winter, and asked to think about it.

Ilsiyar Tukhvatullina, the chief architect of Kazan, asked how Moscow fights off unauthorised buildings along the water. According to her, the city authorities are in no hurry to coordinate the projects of the five investors of the Lokomotiv until there is a single concept, and they are unhappy.

“Unauthorised buildings are difficult to imagine in Moscow. This is the legacy of the 90s. Then a lot was demolished, so we need an audit of the lands," suggested the chief architect of the capital of Russia.

It should be noted that in total, 17 large river infrastructure facilities are planned to be created within the city, including 11 city marinas. The total area of the transformation will be 65 hectares, the city authorities have estimated. The initiatives have already been included in the general development plan of Kazan.

Nikita Stasishin, the deputy minister of construction of Russia, found a lot of shortcomings. First, he pointed out the need to link to the M12:

“If we talk about the Volga, then we need to link it to the M12. Families need to understand where to cross during the trip.

Secondly, there are no gas stations. “The biggest problem is that there are no gas stations," he said. And thirdly, he insisted that the centres be linked to public transport routes so that children could comfortably get to the sailing school. In conclusion, he suggested that the venue of the regatta and extreme sports should definitely be separated from the children's training sessions at the sailing school.