Vladimir Putin: “Kazan is one of the most dynamically developing cities in the country”

(KZN.RU, February 12, Ksenia Shvetsova). For more than two hours, President Vladimir Putin spoke with representatives of the public in the Kazan CC “Moskovsky”. During the discussion of the implementation of the national project “Housing and Urban Environment”, the head of the country was asked many questions that affect almost all spheres of urban development. The proposals and ideas that emerged during the meeting are planned to be included in practical work in the future.

Rustam Minnikhanov, the President of the RT, Igor Komarov, the plenipotentiary of the President of the Russian Federation in the Volga Federal District, Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan, rectors of Kazan universities, architects, activists of the All-Russian Public Front, representatives of non-profit public organizations, business community, members of the Public Chamber of the RT, and others took part in the meeting.

Opening the meeting, Vladimir Putin noted that a whole series of discussions of national projects would begin with it. It should ensure the country's movement in key areas of development. He urged participants to express their opinions and suggestions on improving the urban economy and implementing socially significant programs.

“We gathered in Tatarstan because there is something to see. The republic demonstrates a good example of development and solving problems that are of the highest priority”, said Vladimir Putin. “Kazan today is one of the most dynamically developing cities in the country”, he added.

A series of questions began with one of the most pressing topics not only for Kazan, but also for all Russian cities. Ilshat Gafurov, the co-chairman of the headquarters of the regional branch of All-Russian Public Front in the RT, the rector of Kazan Federal University, drew attention to the first steps in implementing the new law in the field of garbage management. He noted that today more than 700 requests have been received from Tatarstan residents regarding the increase in the tariff for garbage collection. “The collecting places remained the same, and citizens have questions. Distribution of responsibility has occurred. Now management companies are responsible for garbage sites, and the regional operator is responsible for containers. All this causes confusion and conflict situations”, said I. Gafurov. He urged to clearly define the responsibilities of regional operators, as well as explaining to the citizens what changes they will face due to the reform.

“We had a problem of the garbage for a long time, but no one has ever paid attention to it. Today it has become very acute, the amount of garbage has increased. We have never had a garbage recycling industry, just dumped it and that’s all. The state is obliged to pay attention to this problem”, answered V. Putin. “This question requires the combined efforts of citizens and the state. It is necessary to carry out all the changes with a minimum burden on citizens. We have to do everything qualitatively, there should be single standards, and citizens should believe in the quality and effectiveness of this work”. The President of the Russian Federation marked that in the near future, it is necessary to distribute responsibility between the municipality, management companies, and the regional operator. He promised to return to this issue at the on-site meeting of the State Council Presidium on improving the living conditions of the population and creating a favorable urban environment, which will be held today in Innopolis.

Anastasia Yaremenko, a finalist of the program “Architectory.RF”, suggested using the so-called “get-well design” for medical institutions. According to her, this topic is particularly acute for those people who are on the verge of life and death. The external environment is key to recovery for them. It is difficult to bring yourself to fighting the disease in a depressive environment.

Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, promised to consider the use of recreational design in medical institutions. This type of architecture is based on a design that demonstrates the positive impact of the environment on human health.

“You need to apply and implement everything that benefits people. A favorable environment is on the one hand, and the design of the internal healthcare facilities is on the other hand. Of course, this cannot help improve mood and recovery. We will see which programs to include it in”, the President commented on the proposal.

Separately, the meeting participants focused on the development of yard territories, noting that often the size of them is not enough for organizing playgrounds. Answering this question, Vladimir Putin noted that the development of yards is the task of individual regions and municipalities. “We have allocated 5 billion rubles from the federal budget for these purposes, and we will continue to carry out this program. I hope that they will pay attention to this problem and invest not only in Kazan, in Tatarstan, but also in other regions”.

Active citizens gave other specific proposals to address different issues. Teacher Kadriya Nigmatullina told that she works in a school that is located in one of the densely populated district of the city, and noted that the school is overcrowded. “I heard that in Moscow it is allowed to build multi-storey schools. Is it possible to extend this experience to Kazan due to the shortage of land in densely populated districts?” she asked. There is an extension next to the school, which can also be used. The President of Russia noted that the solution of these issues depends on the chief architect of the city. “I think it is quite realizable if it is a historical part of the city. Proceeding from common sense, I think the architect and the Mayor will make the right decision”, said V. Putin and forwarded the question to Ilsur Metshin, the Mayor of Kazan.

“This is the school №104, it is located in a densely populated district of the city, so children study in two shifts”, answered I. Metshin. “But the school №48 is located nearby. We plan to join schools and solve this problem. As for the annex, there are 8 thousand square meters. We are discussing what project to apply to do everything in accordance with the standards. We will do it”, replied the Mayor. He reminded that there are already positive examples of school unification in Kazan.

An important issue during the discussion was the problem of deceived shareholders. “This problem did not arise on its own. It is not because there are a lot of tricksters, but because the state has not regulated this sphere of activity so far in a civilized way”, noted the President of the RF. It is necessary to make decisions that formally limit the work in this sector of the economy in order to cut off the attraction of people's funds and not create conditions for deceiving citizens. “We need to solve a dual problem. On the one hand, we have to stimulate development and construction, and on the other hand, to switch to modern civilized ways of organizing work”, said V. Putin. He noted that work to solve this problem will continue in future with the participation of the population and representatives of public organizations in the course of the implementation of the “Housing and Urban Environment” project in other cities.

Issues of preserving green spaces in cities, creating public spaces, developing cultural areas, transport, rehabilitating people with disabilities, and many others have been discussed at the meeting. Summing up, V. Putin thanked all those present and noted the importance of holding such discussions. “We will discuss much of what I heard today at a meeting of the State Council Presidium. We will analyze your proposals and use them in practical work”, concluded the head of the country.