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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
The surviving Bookstall is resuming operations, but the market's fate is uncertain. Over the summer, the book market near Pochaina metro station in Kyiv endured a series of Russian strikes and devastating fires. Interviewed vendors preliminarily estimate their losses at tens and hundreds of thousands of hryvnias. The overall scale of damage to the entire market has not yet been determined. Despite the severe blows, vendors whose stock survived are gradually returning to work. How businesses are recovering after the Russian strikes — read the report by RBC-Ukraine. Key points: The Bookstall sector is coming back to life: despite fire destroying 60-70% of the book market area, the surviving portion (rows 64-107 of the Bookstall) already received power on 20 August, and vendors are replacing broken glass, repairing shutters, and continuing to trade. Significant merchant losses: since the fire on 16 August, small businesses suffered most — some interviewed vendors lost valuable book collections, equipment warehouses, and seasonal batches of school textbooks in the blaze, preliminarily amounting to hundreds of thousands of hryvnias. Lease factor through 2027 year: the land under the market, about 4,46 ha, is leased by TOV Knyzhkovyi Rynok until 2027 year. Despite a current permit for the Petrovka-Mall and trademark registrations for Pochaina Mall and Flagman City Mall in 2025 year, the developer does not give dates. Economic dead end for the classic market and a mall: rebuilding the informal market format in the Pochaina metro area, according to GDS, is economically impractical due to high land costs near the metro and the shift of demand online. However, a classic enclosed mall could also be potentially low-return due to the area's oversupply of retail space. Mixed-use alternative: experts say the most viable scenario for the site could be a phased redevelopment into a multifunctional space with an intellectual focus (modern library, lecture halls, food hall, retail) and intercept parking. Infrastructure barrier: implementing any major project on Verbova Street will require substantial investment to replace the failing Soviet-era sewer collector in Obolon. The market near Pochaina metro station, which Kyiv residents still habitually call Petrovka after the area's former historical name, came under three waves of Russian strikes this summer — 15 June, 30 July, and 16 August. According to preliminary estimates by market administrator Oleksandr Krashchenko, the last fire destroyed 60–70% of retail space — more than half. The surviving part of the Bookstall sector is rows No. 64–107 on Stepan Bandera Street, 10; and also about 10–13 rows on Verbova Street, 23, are effectively operating. Final figures on the market's own losses will appear only after the State Emergency Service report. But the market is not only burned rows; it’s also the people who have been selling books, stationery, craft supplies, and other goods since 1997 year. Some tenants are looking for new selling spots, others are already glazing windows and fixing shutters, hoping the market, which has survived 29 years, will survive this year too. The fires at Pochaina scorched one of the capital’s most famous book locations but did not destroy its spirit. While rubble is being cleared on the charred site, the surviving Bookstall (the part of the market with used books and editions from 1851-1960 years) is coming back to life, getting its first electricity and welcoming customers. The surviving Bookstall has already received power. Although the fire on 16 August 2026 year struck infrastructure heavily for the third time this summer, it is too early to write off Kyiv’s historic book hub. After four days without power, on 20 August energy workers restored electricity to the surviving part — the Bookstall sector. “Now we’re repairing what we have at the Bookstall. We’re fixing shutters, glazing our shops. The Bookstall exists and operates. We just need to repair the roof in places, otherwise the stalls and stock were preserved,” the market administrator told RBC-Ukraine. Photo: In the Bookstall — rows from 64 to 107 — they are repairing what they can: changing shutters, glazing windows. Here and below — photos from 19 August 2026 year (RBC-Ukraine) A portion of the book market also survived — about 10 rows, though trade there is already mixed: next to books are embroidery and craft supplies. Although the smell of burning still hangs over Verbova Street, some vendors are determined: they are clearing glass, repairing stall frames, and preparing to continue trading. Photo: the ladder of resilience at the printer repair workshop in the Bookstall sector that withstood the fire (RBC-Ukraine) The owner of the printer repair workshop, whose one of two product warehouses burned on 16 August, wants to rebuild and does not intend to leave the market. How the book market was attacked The first fire from shelling was recorded on the night of 15 June — a drone struck the area of Verbova Street, 19, as footage from the State Emergency Service showing smoke over garage buildings confirms. Screenshot: from SES video released on Tuesday, 16 June, showing smoke and flames rising from garage buildings (State Emergency Service of Ukraine on Facebook) The second, on 30 July, caused a fire across about 100 sq. m of pavilions; one person was injured. Read also: Russia defeated literature: what the Kyiv book market looks like after the enemy strike The third, most destructive strike, occurred on the night of 16 August on Verbova Street, 23: according to Kyiv SES spokesperson Pavlo Petrov, the fire area reached about 2000 sq. m. According to tenants, the National Police gave 15 days to compile reports of property damage — a period that the victims consider too short for a realistic assessment. Bills with no one to issue them The overall mood at the market is shock and despair: people lost stock, are left without work and money. One tenant whose stall by the railway tracks burned completely said those who remain plan to look for another space. Photo: for most vendors, the Pochaina book market was a lifelong endeavor (RBC-Ukraine) At the same time, some are determined to rebuild. For example — the owner of the printer repair workshop who spoke to an RBC-Ukraine reporter. The administration and company leadership cannot assess the scale of private losses at all at this stage. According to Krashchenko, they do not conduct trade activities and have no information on either the value or quantity of books burned — those figures are known only to the vendors. Read also: In Kharkiv, a warehouse of Ranok publishing burned in an RF attack: millions of books lost From preliminary assessments by RBC-Ukraine’s sources, a businesswoman who before 1 September had bought notebooks, school textbooks and stationery for 124 thousand hryvnias and had not yet paid the supplier — that stock was destroyed by fire on the night of 16 August. Another source preliminarily estimated the lost inventory of a secondhand bookshop at 100 thousand hryvnias. The workshop owner lost warehouses of cartridges; her preliminary estimate of losses exceeds 70 thousand hryvnias. Photo: a toxic smell of burning lingers near the container with charred printer parts (RBC-Ukraine) The Pochaina market had democratic prices compared with large bookstores and specialized marketplaces. As an example of the price difference, in early August one collection of biology NMT practice tests cost about 400 hryvnias, whereas elsewhere it sold for around 450 hryvnias. It was this kind of children's literature families with reduced incomes during the war came here to buy before the school year. The war affected turnover: according to some vendors, their daily revenue needed to break even is about 1000 UAH. After the summer attacks actual daily revenue fell to about 650 UAH. Photo: before 1 September, thousands of Kyiv residents went to Pochaina on weekends with their families to shop for school (RBC-Ukraine) Land and urban planning context The legal situation around the market remains complicated. The actual territory of the book market covers plots along Verbova Street, while in urban planning documentation the project is listed at Stepan Bandera Street, 10. According to a response from the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of the KMDA to an RBC-Ukraine inquiry, two land plots are municipally owned: 3,5511 ha, cadastral number 8000000000:78:142:0025, and 0,9085 ha, 8000000000:78:223:0010. In 2006 year they were leased to TOV Knyzhkovyi Rynok, EDRPOU code 24598002, for construction of a multifunctional trade and entertainment complex (TRK) and parking. The Kyiv City Council in 2012 year extended the lease term by 15 years — until 2027. After several refusals on 2 December 2021 year, the Department issued Knyzhkovyi Rynok Order No. 1687 defining urban planning conditions and restrictions for designing a TRK with a maximum height of 45 m and parking. The detailed territory plan (DTP) of 2016 year initially envisaged locating the Petrovka-Mall at Stepan Bandera Street, 10 with an area of about 350 thousand sq. m. Since June 2020 year, beneficiary control over TOV Knyzhkovyi Rynok through the Swedish company Stadsis AB transferred to structures linked to the group of Vagif Aliyev (currently the group's key assets — Mandarin Plaza, Lavina Mall, a stake in Blockbuster Mall — are registered to his daughter Maryna Dorokhina). This is confirmed by the registration change history of TOV Knyzhkovyi Rynok in Opendatabot and extracts from the State Register of Property Rights in the Clarity Project. In March 2025 year the company Knyzhkovyi Rynok additionally registered trademarks POCHAINA MALL (No. 369817) and FLAGMAN CITY MALL (No. 369816). Screenshot: according to open state registries, POCHAINA MALL and FLAGMAN CITY MALL are registered to TOV Knyzhkovyi Rynok 09.03.2025 (Screenshot: Clarity Project) The developer’s representative did not provide a response to official editorial queries about the project's status and the tenants' future as of 2027 year. Old market and giant mall — unprofitable? According to GDS experts, given current demographic and consumer trends, restoring the market in its previous format may be economically difficult. As Anna Anisimova, commercial director of GDS, told RBC-Ukraine, rebuilding the territory in its original form is unlikely to be economically viable. “Based on current demographic and consumer dynamics in Kyiv, the feasibility of reconstructing specifically in market format is low,” the GDS commercial director emphasizes. In her view, that format does not match the market value of land in this metro-adjacent location. Moreover, foot traffic at retail points is falling and a significant portion of book demand has already moved online. At the same time, the expert notes the other side: Pochaina is the only specialized book market in the capital, which for decades performed a cultural, educational and intellectual mission. Read also: Ranok publishing will need up to 5 years to recover after the Russian strike GDS suggests that the absence of public timelines for the project may indicate a revision of the pre-war concept. In addition, the developer must consider overall portfolio risks. By expert assessment, a classic mall at this location, given the high saturation of the area with commercial space (nearby Blockbuster Mall, Gorodok Gallery, the former Plazma, Auchan, Epicenter — Editor), would also likely have low profitability. “The mall market at Pochaina is oversaturated, so building another enclosed mega-mall is unlikely to be a priority,” summarizes Anna Anisimova. What transformation might look like The classic scenario for redeveloping market zones near key transport hubs in Kyiv involves phased evolution: legalization; regulation of trade; change of land-use designation; comprehensive development with an updated tenant mix. Photo: in the Bookstall sector the blast wave damaged the roof in places and it needs repair (RBC-Ukraine) According to Anna Anisimova, having a developer with an assembled land bank and control over lease relations allows flexible management of the transformation process without excessive social tension. Given the location near the metro and the city rail, and the dense commercial environment, the most realistic format is mixed-use rather than an enclosed mall, she believes. She adds that a winning concept could be a mix with a pronounced intellectual emphasis: a modern public library; spaces and auditoriums for presentations and educational projects; a quality food hall; commercial retail; and intercept parking for left-bank residents. Photo: part of the market’s craft goods rows — about 10-13 rows — also survived (RBC-Ukraine) Anisimova thinks project financing will most likely come either from the group’s internal resources or by attracting co-investors for specific components — for example, an underground/multilevel parking or specialized retail operators. GDS interprets the current silence of the landowners as a tactical pause before revising the outdated pre-war Petrovka-Mall concept: refusing to give timelines may indicate a rethinking of the business model. Engineering barrier for a mall In addition to economics and concept, a purely engineering problem stands in the way of major construction — chronically failing utilities. A main sewer collector with a diameter of 1250 mm runs under Verbova Street, transporting wastewater for the entire Obolon massif. The Petrovka district was designed as a Soviet industrial zone with warehouses and factories and is technically not ready for new large objects without repair or network reconstruction. Photo: communications cables cut off by the fires at the burned Pochaina book market (RBC-Ukraine) Kyivvodokanal’s current repairs amount to rehabilitation — pulling polymer sleeves inside old pipes. In the authors’ assessment, the collector’s condition may become an engineering constraint for large-scale construction. Whether it requires full replacement and who should fund the works must be confirmed by Kyivvodokanal, which RBC-Ukraine contacted but had not replied to at the time of publication. Seeking a balance for book lovers and business The Russian attacks intensified the longstanding clash between Petrovka’s informal history and the need for urban renewal. Today several factors intersect on the site: the preserved core of the Bookstall, where enthusiasts and sellers daily restore trade by their own efforts; a lease until 2027 year, which forces the parties to seek compromise solutions; and the economic impracticality of both preserving dilapidated rows and building a typical giant mall. The market’s revival in a renewed form depends on whether the city authorities, the developer and the cultural community can transform the burned site into a modern multifunctional cluster that makes room for Kyiv’s book history. RBC-Ukraine continues to monitor the situation. Questions and answers (FAQ): – What will happen to the book market at Pochaina after the fires? – More than half of the market’s retail space was destroyed by the fire on 16 August. At the same time, the surviving Bookstall sector is resuming operations. The further fate of the whole territory is not yet determined. – Is the Bookstall sector at Pochaina operating? – Yes. On 20 August this market segment received power. Vendors are repairing damaged structures, glazing windows and gradually restoring trade. – Will a mall be built on the site of the Petrovka book market? – Urban planning documentation already exists for building Petrovka Mall at the site, but there are no current implementation timelines. About 4,46 ha of land is leased by TOV Knyzhkovyi Rynok until 2027 year. – What might appear on the site of the Pochaina book market? – Experts believe the most viable scenario is mixed-use — a multifunctional space instead of a traditional market or a large enclosed mall. Possible components include a modern library, educational spaces, a food hall, retail and intercept parking. – Why might a large mall not be built at Pochaina? – The location already has a significant concentration of retail space, so a classic large mall could be low-profit. An additional problem is the failing sewer collector under Verbova Street: major construction may require substantial investment.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Відродження на згарищі чи будівництво ТРЦ: що буде з книжковим ринком на Почайній". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: RBC-Ukraine.
