This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Zvenyhorodka Territorial Community
Cherkasy
Population:
The Zvenyhorodka urban territorial community is located on the territory of Zvenyhorodka district, Cherkasy region.
The total area of the territory: 486.2 km²
Population: 27,558
Men: 11,196
Women: 16,362
Internally displaced persons:
The community includes 15 villages and has its administrative center in the town of Zvenyhorodka.
History
The first archaeological findings on the territory of the area remind us of settlements of the Stone Age.
The ancient name of the town comes from Zvenyhora Mount, on which there was a defensive point with a bell (“Zvenyhora” translates roughly into English as a “ringing mountain”). That bell announced the attack of enemies, nomadic tribes on the borders of Kievan Rus, rang during riots, summoned townspeople to the court or announced a holiday.
According to legend, the bell rang for the last time during the attack of the horde in 1240. The town was completely destroyed, the bell rolled from the tower and got stuck in the swamp. Until now, if you put your ear to the mountain, it rings. According to legends, the place is magical and gives strength to visitors.
After the destruction, the Zvenyhorodka castle was restored in 1363 to become an important trade point due to its location at the crossroads of trade routes.
The first written mention of Zvenyhorodka on the Hnylyi Tikych River (it is this river that flows through the town) dates back to 1394.
As in any county town, a lot of brick buildings were built in Zvenyhorodka. A significant part of them has survived to this day. These ancient buildings add a special flavor and qualitatively distinguish Zvenyhorodka from among many other district centers of the Cherkasy region.
The great Transfiguration Cathedral was the main Orthodox church of Zvenyhorodka in the 19th century. It was built in 1820 and destroyed in 1936. A nearby street was paved with broken bricks from the cathedral. Since then, there was no Orthodox church in the town. The reconstruction of the Transfiguration Cathedral began as late as 1992 and lasted six years.
The Transfiguration Catholic Church is the oldest building in Zvenyhorodka. Funds for its construction were allocated in 1799 by the widow of the last Zvenyhorodka elder, Solomia Soltyk. Construction was completed in 1808. The church has survived to this day in a very modified form.
The Zvenyhorodka conglomerates constitute a geological monument of nature. They form a picturesque rock massif on the right bank of the Hnylyi Tikych River.
The Hudzivskyi Hydrological Reserve is also located on the territory of the community.
Economy and Welfare
The economy of the Zvenyhorodka community is mainly based on micro, small and medium enterprises, including agribusiness companies. They are the main providers of goods, jobs, and services to the population, as well as producers of local agricultural products.
The industry of the community includes enterprises for the processing of raw materials of animal and plant origin.
The most famous is the Zvenyhorodka Cheese Factory, known under the trademark “Zvenyhora”.
The community also has the Zvenyhorodka Forestry on its territory.
The research and production firm “Urozhai”, a subdivision of one of the largest agricultural holdings in Eastern Europe, is located on the territory of the community. There is also a significant number of small agricultural enterprises and farms here.
There are 7 preschool institutions, 15 general secondary education institutions, 1 technical school, as well as 3 out-of-school education institutions functioning in the Zvenyhorodka urban territorial community.
There is an extensive network of health care facilities: 5 outpatient clinics, 16 medical and obstetrical stations and the Zvenyhorodka multidisciplinary intensive care hospital.
The Taras Shevchenko Center of Culture and Leisure is actively functioning in Zvenyhorodka.
Community and War
The full-scale russian invasion threw down new challenges to the Zvenyhorodka community which it successfully solves. First of all, this is support for internally displaced persons who have found shelter in the Zvenyhorodka area, assistance to the military, and ensuring the continuous operation of critical infrastructure enterprises.
As of January 1, 2024, about 4,000 internally displaced persons lived in the community.
From the first days of the war, the people of Zvenyhorodka, and the youth in particular, quickly organized themselves and created a humanitarian and volunteer hub in the town of Zvenyhorodka. They help military formations, support socially vulnerable sections of the population and internally displaced persons.
On the territory of the community, there are two places of compact residence for internally displaced persons in the villages of Moryntsi and Husakove where 150 people can be accommodated.
People of the Community
Oleksandr Sayenko has headed the community since 2020. He has also been the head of the Zvenyhorodka Town Council since 2002.
During the leadership of Oleksandr Sayenko, the community became the winner of the grant program from U-LEAD with Europe and received financial aid. With the assistance of the head of the community, all utilities and critical infrastructure facilities were provided with generators.
The development of partnership relations is a separate topical area of work. The Zvenyhorodka urban territorial community has established close relations with the town of Eltville on the Rhine in Germany.
The Mayor of the town of Eltville, Patrick Kunkel, announced the decision to officially legitimize twin-town partnership relations between the town of Zvenyhorodka and Eltville.
In October 2023, a delegation from the German town of Eltville on the Rhine paid a friendly visit to Zvenyhorodka. The head of the fund, Peter Fries and his partner, entrepreneur and philanthropist Alexander Steinhoff personally arrived in Ukraine with another humanitarian cargo: an ambulance and a set of medicines, tools, and devices for the military.
The German partners emphasized that the community of the town of Eltville on the Rhine developed a program to help Zvenyhorodka, which involves attracting both public and budget funds. This means tens of thousands of euros of aid.
Development Strategy
The 2022-2027 development strategy of the Zvenyhorodka urban territorial community has been approved in the community. The strategic vision of the development of the Zvenyhorodka urban territorial community: a modern, powerful administrative, touristic, industrial center in the heart of Cherkasy region, which is attractive for investing, setting up and running businesses, provides comfortable living and ensures development and recreation.
The main investment projects that are planned to be implemented in the community in the near future are the capital repair of water supply networks in the town of Zvenyhorodka and the capital repair of the football field and the facilities of the children’s and youth sports school. As of now, design and estimate documents have been developed.
Also, in the town of Zvenyhorodka, new construction of sewage treatment facilities is planned.
The Zvenyhorodka community is a community of united and at the same time hospitable people who protect their traditions and history. The main priorities of development are economic growth of the community, improvement of the quality of life in the community, strengthening of human potential.
List of Sources
- Wikipedia
- Facebook page of the Zvenyhorodka Town Council
- Official website of the Zvenyhorodka Town Council
- Magazine “Journey through the Area”;
- “Great Ukraine. 25 years of independence”, “Novy Chas” Publishing House, Kyiv, 2016.