Nettles instead of newcomers. The settlement, built in Tereblya in order to resettle people from Solotvino, 7 months after the inauguration, looks like a wasteland.
Solotvino is the zone of technogenic disaster. The land, together with buildings and, God forbid, people, can fall through into huge karst chasms above salt mines.
But residents of Solotvino, as expected, do not rush to the new place. Though it was built from scratch and with a lot of hype, 50 kilometers away, in Tereblya village in the same Tyachiv district. 133 apartments in apartment buildings and 17 cottages, a school for 300 students, day care for 140 children, and the promise of "the entire infrastructure…"
Managers were proud: one of the largest state-funded complex social project since independence, and reported: it will be a "candy." For now, only 9 families have received keys to the appartments. The project cost exceeded 100 million hryvnia. The project, that the former head of the Regional State Administration Oleksandr Ledyda was so happy about, turned out to be a "pipe dream". At our expense…
The settlement was opened in November 2013, the ceremony was attended by the Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Vilkul who flew by helicopter. Now, there is cow dung on the landing pad specially constructed for this occasion.
With a big fanfare, the official welcomed relocatees. However, now, as we can see, only thistles dwell there…
Windows without curtains, dead meters, dried trees and shrubs occupying the territory… Almost 7 months have passed, and the picture in the village, which the now former government was so proud about, is almost like in the Chernobyl exclusion zone…
Instead, in Solotvino, things are humming even several dozens meters away from the chasm. Mr. Ivan is doing summer chores in the courtyard. He is not going to move to the new village from the place where he has lived 50 years.
We talked to this elderly resident of Solotvino seven months ago, when the settlement was about to be opened. Then, the old man grumbled that he did not want to leave his house and cattle… "But the house has cracked, and the land beneath it is sliding slowly, so I probably will have to move" – the old man sighed…
Now, the man, who worked forty years in the salt mine, which now threatens to take his home underground, says: here he is at home rightfully.And who he will be there, what documents will he have? "No! I’m not going! Because that house is not mine! God knows whose house it is! The land belongs not to the village, but to some boss. And if that boss comes and throws me out, when what?" – Ivan Kryts says.
And the officials were told that people did not want to go here: houses are small, standard, no place to keep cattle, and people did not want to leave there own, even if unsteady, land. The officials were not listening and promised: soon life would be in full swing here. Now, the new regional authorities will have to deal with the dead village. They came here with a "working visit." The meeting took place in the most inhabited facility of the village – the school. Local leaders spoke about the problem: first, it is unclear who owns what. And the water supply system is messed up: it’s irregular, there are problems with sewage, and the water is of poor quality – salty… So more time and more money is needed.
They promise to repair water supply by September. And for another one million hryvnias. And the status of the settlement and buildings is still unclear, the authorities confirm.
Valeriy Lunchenko, the head of the Transcarpathian Regional State Administration, admits: "People do not wish to move, because they say – there is no good water, there are no conditions for living. And there is another problem with the status of the facilities, which should be clarified. For this, the village council should take the facilities on the balance sheet." The "Governor" says that he sees big potential in the village, and the new school and the day care here are almost a luxury for the region. But he admits that there are problems with the construction.
The relocation of residents of Solotvino will take six to twelve months, the young leader said.
Meanwhile, some people suggest to use the settlement for accommodation of refugees. The head of the region is ready to consider the idea. But only "if there is an urgent need." "They have the status of tourists and so we can not provide housing for them and so on. But this is an option. Which perhaps will be considered if the issue becomes very pressing" – Valeriy Lunchenko, the head of the Transcarpathian Regional State Administration says.
Interestingly, the meeting is attended by the official, who has been in charge of the settlement construction since the very beginning as the "infrastructure" deputy "governor" – Victor Lukecha, the director of the department of housing and communal services, construction and infrastructure of the RSA. He listens about the problems of the newly built settlement calmly. He acknowledges the shortcomings in the construction. But, supposedly, there have been objective reasons.
"This facility was quite difficult to build, it is such a big project… There are drawbacks. Small imperfections. I think they make up one percent at most. And in three months, I think, we will eliminate all of them" – Victor Lukecha, the deputy head of the Transcarpathian Regional State Administration says. The question if he feels his personal responsibility for the state of the facility remains unanswered. And when asked "So what is the estimate of the object?" he answers with a somewhat mysterious "officially – almost one hundred million, unofficially – 130."
Tereblya village head Mykola Tsoka commented as follows: "Yes, people have mixed feelings about this neighborhood because the best land was used for its construction. We have done some outreach. And most people already think positively.And they hope for state support. Things are moving forward, hopefully it will give impetus to the development of the village. Of course, if they address those issues that we have raised. We hope for the best."
Solotvino village head Yuriy Ukhal says: 9 families have moved.
"The delay is mainly due to water and sanitation. And there is the issue of the housing status, which to this day has not been resolved. People, who have houses in Solotvino in private ownership, ask under what conditions they will receive houses in Tereblya. As long as it is not resolved, they are not too eager to move to Tereblya." When asked "What is the reason that the village is empty and generally not in a very good condition – misuse of funds and irresponsibility of authorities or something else?", Mr. Yuriy diplomatically says, "I have no answer for it" .
In addition to the important question: who will be held responsible for obvious abuse of power during the construction of the settlement?, we are also interested in another one: will residents of Solotvino wait until the new government eliminate defects and make a new place suitable for living?.. Seven months ago, when the former government was opening the settlement in Tereblya, we visited not only Mr. Ivan, but also the man who lives closest to the brink. Then Mr. Mykhailo, a village butcher, though complained that there are no conditions to live and work in Tereblya, still agreed that he would have to move. This time, the owner is not home. But in his yard things are humming: chickens, turkeys, and even pigeons, cattle in the barn. And a full stack of wood. Obviously, the owner still plans to spend the winter in Solotvino…
And here is again the guestion to the authorities: maybe they really should consider the settlement in Tereblya as a place of potential asylum?..
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