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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
Battle for Volodymyr Descent: can the capital defend the land near the Philharmonic from development by Dmitry Buryak’s structures?
The fate of a plot of land measuring 0,61 ha on Volodymyr Descent, 4 in Kyiv — near the Philharmonic, within the boundaries of multiple protected zones — is currently being decided in court. JSC “Construction Technologies,” to which city authorities leased this land for construction of an “office-hotel cultural and entertainment complex” more than twenty years ago, is trying to annul the Kyiv City Council’s decision from 2023 that refused renewal of the relevant lease. The company, which is part of the orbit of well-known Russian-Lithuanian businessman Dmitry Buryak (in the collage), argues that the lease was concluded through the courts in 2017, so the city leadership de jure could not have “refused the company a lease extension” in 2023. The first-instance court sided with that LLC; the city council is now appealing its verdict. This situation is one piece of a larger story about attempts by several companies to develop territory on Volodymyr Descent.
As KV has learned, the Northern Commercial Court of Appeal may soon issue its verdict in case No. 910/4479/26, which concerns the fate of the plot on Volodymyr Descent, 4 (Pecherskyi district of the capital).
Kyiv City Council is currently appealing the Commercial Court of Kyiv’s decision of 16 July 2026, which satisfied JSC “Construction Technologies”’s claim to declare unlawful and annul City Council decision No. 6314/6355 of 20 April 2023. That decision had denied the company renewal of the lease for the aforementioned land. The appellate hearing on this matter was scheduled for 15 September but was postponed to 6 October 2026.
What this is about
On 21 October 2004 the City Council, by decision No. 657/2067, approved the transfer of a plot of 0,61 ha on Volodymyr Descent, 4, to closed joint-stock company “Construction Technologies” (at the time this company was a closed joint-stock company) for 10 years for the construction, operation, and maintenance of an office-hotel cultural and entertainment complex with underground parking. This plot was allocated from the reserve lands for residential and public development. On 26 July 2005 the city council and “Construction Technologies” concluded the corresponding lease agreement.
In April 2015 the company applied to the City Council to renew the lease for a new term. On 9 February 2016 the Department of Land Resources of Kyiv City State Administration (KSCA), which had been assigned to review the application, responded to JSC “Construction Technologies” that the city authorities did not object to prolonging the lease. Two weeks later, on 24 February, that department submitted a draft resolution to the city council to renew the lease of the Volodymyr Descent plot, 4 for another 10 years. However, that document was never approved.
Against this backdrop, in 2016 JSC “Construction Technologies” filed suit with the Commercial Court of Kyiv seeking renewal of the lease. On 1 February 2017 the court satisfied the company’s claims — the City Council, the defendant in the dispute, objected to the suit, arguing it could not agree to prolongation because it lacked its own decision. The City Council explained this by saying that JSC “Construction Technologies” still had not developed the land. On 18 May of the same year the Kyiv Appellate Commercial Court upheld the first-instance ruling, thus denying the City Council’s appeal. On 15 August 2017 the Cassation Commercial Court put an end to the matter — it left in force the decisions of the aforementioned courts. In particular, the panel noted that “improper performance of the lease terms by the lessee may be evidenced by use of the land for purposes other than its intended use, not by non-use of the land for construction.”
While that court dispute was ongoing, on 6 July 2017 the then-deputy head of KSCA, Oleksandr Spasybko, together with the Department of Land Resources of KSCA, submitted to the City Council a draft decision to deny the company renewal of the lease for the Volodymyr Descent land, 4. The grounds cited were the plot’s nondevelopment for three years from the lease registration, as stipulated in the agreement. The explanatory note to the draft clarified that part of the land was built-up, but only around 6% — it housed a heating unit without an “established legal status.” The document also noted that the land was partially fenced with a metal fence and used as parking for service vehicles, partially asphalted, and partially covered with greenery.
Interestingly, that draft decision was approved nearly six years later — on 20 April 2023. Decision No. 6314/6355 denied JSC “Construction Technologies” renewal of the lease. That occurred after the courts had already approved the lease prolongation. Notably, Kyiv City Council member Dmytro Bilotserkovets (UDAR faction) pushed for including the draft on the plenary session’s agenda. He said this concerned a “large plot near the Philharmonic” and that the city must “not allow Russian business to develop it.”
In support of their lawsuit challenging the City Council decision, representatives of JSC “Construction Technologies” point out that the city authorities effectively had no right to refuse lease renewal, since the lease had already been recognized as renewed by the courts. Kyiv Commercial Court judge Yaroslav Marynchenko endorsed that position — he stated that the City Council had no legal grounds or subject matter to reconsider the prolongation request eight years later.
Context
This situation should be viewed in a broader context — including neighboring plots that the “sister” company of JSC “Construction Technologies,” LLC “Etrex,” plans to develop. Over 2000–2004 years these two business entities obtained five plots from the City Council on Volodymyr Descent, 4 and 6, and in the Central Park of Culture and Recreation totaling 1,59 ha: two plots (including the aforementioned 0,61 ha plot) were leased to JSC “Construction Technologies,” and three plots to LLC “Etrex.”
Approximate location of the plots
On 26 April 2007 the KSCA, by order No. 495, granted LLC “Etrex” and CJSC “Construction Technologies” permission to design and construct an office-hotel cultural and entertainment complex with underground parking on Volodymyr Descent, 4 and 6.
The document stated that the companies planned to develop four plots leased from the city at the specified addresses. According to the order, the clients were instructed to “obtain initial data for project design, develop and approve project-estimate documentation in the established manner, obtain permits for the works from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Ukraine and the Main Department for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of KSCA,” etc. However, the lessees were unable for a long time to move forward with development, and only occasional public statements voiced city and community opposition. More active engagement by both sides began only about four years ago.
On 30 September 2019 the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of KSCA denied LLC “Etrex” urban planning conditions and restrictions (UPCR) for designing a hotel complex with public premises on Volodymyr Descent, 6 (the plot leased by the company measuring 0,45 ha). The official reason was “inconsistency of the planned development with local-level urban planning documentation.” Allegedly, under Kyiv’s General Plan the larger part of the plot’s functional designation belongs to streets and roads and partially to public buildings and structures; therefore, officials concluded a hotel could not be built there.
LLC “Etrex” disagreed and sued the Kyiv District Administrative Court (OASK, now liquidated) to declare the refusal unlawful and oblige issuance of UPCR. Among other arguments, the plaintiff cited information from the State Enterprise “Institute Kyivgenplan” of JSC “Kyivprojekt,” the developer of the current General Plan, that the larger part of the plot functionally belongs to public buildings and structures. Again, this was a dispute over different interpretations of urban planning documentation — when different officials “label” the same territory differently.
Eventually, on 2 December 2021 the Cassation Administrative Court fully satisfied LLC “Etrex”’s claims, obliging the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of KSCA to issue UPCR for design of development on Volodymyr Descent, 6.
A year and a half later, on 28 March 2023 the Department issued LLC “Etrex” UPCR to design construction of a hotel complex with public premises on the Volodymyr Descent plot, 6. This occurred the day after the city published a notice expressing disagreement with that development, as noted above. Thus KSCA officials complied with the court’s decision, but the action was largely formal — the issued urban planning document is among the strangest ever prepared by city authorities.
The UPCR were de jure issued for design, but they explicitly stated that new construction on the land is prohibited. The department explained that the plot lies in the buffer zone of Saint Sophia of Kyiv, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and the monument “Historical landscape of the Kyiv hills and the Dnipro River valley.” Accordingly, the UPCR did not set maximum permissible building height or maximum allowable coverage percentage. The UPCR also stated that the plot on Volodymyr Descent, 6, is partially located in a flood zone and in a landslide-prone area.
It can be assumed that LLC “Etrex” will challenge these UPCR, demanding removal of the prohibition on building from the document.
Shortly before that, on 7 March 2023 the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of KSCA refused LLC “Etrex” and JSC “Construction Technologies” UPCR for designing an administrative-business center on the plots they lease on Volodymyr Descent, 4 (the plot of 0,21 ha leased by Etrex and the aforementioned 0,61 ha plot leased to Construction Technologies). The refusal did not explicitly state the reasons; the document only noted that the applicants provided inaccurate information “about the land plots or property located on them” and failed to submit certain documents necessary to decide on issuing UPCR.
At the end of March 2023 LLC “Etrex” sued the Kyiv District Administrative Court to declare that refusal unlawful and oblige the Department to issue UPCR. As of today that case has not been considered on the merits.
Interestingly, this dispute may not have reached any resolution because plans for developing the territory were adjusted. In March 2026 LLC “Etrex” again applied to the Department for UPCR to design an administrative-business center with underground parking on Volodymyr Descent, 4. That application referenced only the plot leased by Etrex of 0,25 ha — JSC “Construction Technologies” was no longer a party to that request. Officials again denied Etrex UPCR, and the company is now appealing that city verdict in court.
On 27 March 2023 the KSCA press service announced that the city is initiating termination of the land use rights for the plots leased by Etrex and Construction Technologies — to prevent their development. The basis cited was that the territory falls within “historically protected zones.” KSCA noted that “the lessee is pressuring the city to issue UPCR for designing development on a plot where it is prohibited,” and courts had already satisfied a suit obliging the city to provide that document. The press release did not name the lessee companies, but they are well known.
The city’s position was supported by the public. On 17 April 2023 conservation specialist Dmytro Perov said it is worth fighting to preserve the area because the plots on Volodymyr Descent, 4 and 6, contain structures that may have significant historical value.
He clarified that these are buildings of the first stage of Kyiv’s centralized water supply, built in 1871–72: an old filtration facility and a unique two-story wooden residential house, one of the few surviving wooden buildings in the Central Historic Area. According to Perov, the roof of this building has been gradually disappearing, “which unmistakably indicates the developer’s intentions.” He suggested these objects should be given “a second life,” since “the city has a successful example of renovating former water supply structures,” for instance the Water Museum operating in the water tower (1876 year) and the clean water reservoir (1909 year) in Khreshchatyi Park.
And on 20 April that year the City Council supported draft resolutions to terminate the lease agreements with LLC “Etrex” for plots on Volodymyr Descent, 4 and 6 (measuring 0,21 ha and 0,45 ha) — this happened the same day the council adopted the decision not to renew the lease agreement with JSC “Construction Technologies.”
In the case of LLC “Etrex” the official grounds for removing it from municipal land were that the company planned to erect new buildings despite a “ban on changing the historical urban structure of the territory.” This moratorium was explained by the land’s location within protected zones:
the landscape and local history monument “Historical landscape of the Kyiv hills and the Dnipro River valley” (both plots are within this zone);
the national architectural monument “Building of the National Philharmonic” (the Volodymyr Descent plot, 4 measuring 0,21 ha);
the UNESCO World Heritage site “Kyiv: Saint Sophia Cathedral and related monastic buildings, Kyiv Pechersk Lavra” (the Volodymyr Descent plot, 6 measuring 0,45 ha).
However, in 2024 LLC “Etrex” began challenging the City Council’s decisions to terminate the leases. For the 0,21 ha plot the company succeeded — the cassation court sided with it. As for the 0,45 ha plot, the city initiated an appeal because Etrex won in the first instance.
According to open-source information, a hotel complex called “Euro Park” with a total area of over 30 thousand sq. m is planned for this territory, which would include a five-star hotel, fitness centers, restaurants, and a business center with a conference hall, among other facilities. The project developer is the company “DeVision.”
One of the visualizations of the hotel complex
Interesting details
Notably, on the Volodymyr Descent plot, 4 measuring 0,61 ha, are supports for the pedestrian bridge from Volodymyrska Hill Park to Khreshchatyi Park, commonly known as the “Klitschko glass bridge” (built in 2019). Media report that construction was made possible by an agreement signed in March 2018 between the municipal enterprise “Engineering Center” (the project’s client) and JSC “Construction Technologies” (then-lessee). Under that agreement the company consented to the works, and the Engineering Center, in turn, pledged to “provide necessary assistance in the project’s development on the leased plot if required.”
The agreement referenced another contract between the same company and the municipal enterprise “Kyiv Investment Agency” (KIA). Public sources do not disclose what that contract entailed, but KIA is known to be the client for the cable car construction, whose station is to be located on the same plot.
Another Volodymyr Descent plot, 4 (area 0,14 ha), leased by JSC “Construction Technologies,” was already developed in 2007 — an office center named “DeVision” sits there (1,7 thousand sq. m; as of 2015 it belonged to the aforementioned JSC). The EU Advisory Mission to Ukraine is among the tenants. That building was damaged by a missile attack from the Russian Federation in October 2022.
As for the Central Park plot leased by LLC “Etrex,” it is not yet developed, although the company received UPCR for its design in 2013 (the document is not publicly available — KV). One reason is disagreement among relevant state bodies with the lessee’s plans to build an entertainment complex there.
Over 2020–2021 years LLC “Etrex” repeatedly sought permission from the State Architectural and Construction Inspectorate (SACI) for that construction, but its applications were not approved; SACI twice returned them for revision. The last attempt dated 12 November 2021 ended with SACI refusing Etrex the permit because the company did not provide documents confirming coordination of construction works with cultural heritage protection bodies.
Following its usual practice, LLC “Etrex” went to court — in August 2022 it sued OASK to declare SACI’s refusal unlawful, but that case has not yet been considered.
Who plans the controversial development
According to the analytical system Youcontrol, JSC “Construction Technologies” is part of the DeVision group, which unites more than forty companies engaged in commercial and residential construction. Its portfolio includes several well-known projects, such as the multifunctional center “Stolychnyi” (Atmosfera shopping gallery, Ramada Encore hotel, and Europa business center) and a business center on Illinska Street in Kyiv.
Among others, the DeVision group includes the scandal-plagued LLC “Budinvestgroup,” which plans to build a sports and wellness complex on the 23 km of Stolychnoye Highway in Kyiv (Koncha-Zaspa). That company is currently suing to “restore” a lease for a plot of 100 ha, termination of which in 2012 — including due to violations of environmental law — was pursued by the prosecutor’s office. Budinvestgroup argues that no court order requiring return of the land to the city was issued and no handover act was signed. The company also points out that changes in land registration procedures mean the lease formally still exists, although the lease right is not legally registered, which the developer intends to correct on appeal.
As for LLC “Etrex,” Youcontrol marks its relation to that group as historical, i.e., not currently active. Nevertheless, some ties to DeVision likely remain. For example, Etrex director Yurii Nesteruk also heads several companies Youcontrol attributes to the same group, such as LLC “Tiz-Topaz” and LLC “Company Niteko.”
Youcontrol names Dmitry Buryak — a Russian businessman with a Lithuanian passport — as a key figure in the DeVision group. Among other things, Buryak is known for his companies’ joint plans with structures of Ukrainian billionaire Ihor Kolomoisky to build basketball arenas in Lviv, Dnipro, and Odesa as part of preparations for the European Basketball Championship in 2015. Ultimately those plans failed — one reason being events in the summer of 2014.
Recall that Oleksandr Svystunov has served as director of the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of KSCA since 1 November 2016. The Department of Land Resources of KSCA has been headed by Valentyna Pelykh since 29 June 2021 (she had been acting head since 2 April 2021).
Land relations in the capital are currently overseen by the aforementioned KSCA deputy head Vladyslav Andronov, while another deputy of Vitalii Klychko, Viacheslav Nepop, is responsible for the activities of the urban planning department.
Author: Oleksandr Hlazunov
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Битва за Володимирський узвіз: чи вдасться столиці відстояти землю біля філармонії від забудови структурами Дмитра Буряка". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: ANTIKOR.
