Mykhailivka Territorial Community

History

Mykhailivka was founded in the early 19th century as a result of the merger of several farm settlements developed by state peasants and serfs who escaped from various places of Ukraine and central russian provinces. The first farm settlement was founded in 1805 by Mykhailo Chudnovsky, a descendant of a Zaporizhia Cossack, a native of the Poltava area, after whom the settlement was later named.

In 1965, Mykhailivka became an urban-type settlement.

On 14 December 2017, in the course of decentralization reform, the Mykhailivka Settlement Community was formed by way of bringing together the Mykhailivka Settlement Council, the Burchak Village Council and the Tymoshivka Village Council.

Preservation of cultural and historical heritage is one of the main values of the Mykhailivka Community. The Oath memorial complex was installed in 1974 in the centre of Victory Square.

The Mykhailivka Community gave the world an outstanding poet, translator, doctor, and public figure – Saul Chernykhovskyi. On 20 August 2020, a memorial plaque dedicated to Saul Chernykhovskyi was opened in the Mykhailivka Local History Museum.

Economy and Welfare

Many different enterprises and institutions representing various types of activities work in the Mykhailivka Community. One hundred and twenty-four retail trade facilities and seventeen catering providers operate in the territory of the Community; the Obriy market also functions in the Community.

There are three communal enterprises working in the territory of the Settlement Council, which perform improvement works and provide the entire range of communal services in the territory of the localities the Council is responsible for.

The Community is focused on the cultural development of its residents: it runs culture centres, leisure centres, libraries, museums, art and music schools. Nine culture centres function in the Community.

The Community also develops education: its network of educational institutions consists of six general educational institutions and five preschool institutions, including two kindergartens, three secondary and primary schools.

Community and War

The territory of the Mykhailivka Community has been temporarily occupied since 28 February 2022.

During a year and a half of occupation and regular shelling of the territory, educational institutions, houses, industrial enterprises, and agricultural facilities have been destroyed. The invaders are mining the territory, building defensive structures, mercilessly exploiting all available technical capabilities in the territory of the Community and all the communal machines of the Community, literally destroying them.

The Settlement Head, the Secretary of the Settlement Council, deputies of the Settlement Head and a number of officials, as well as a large part of the residents of the Community, were forced to leave their homes under the pressure of the invaders, left and are staying in the territory controlled by Ukraine continuing to perform their official duties.

The Community is constantly working on solving the issues of providing and distributing humanitarian aid to the residents of the Community who were forced to leave their homes under the pressure of the invaders. Social and household issues, legal and medical issues, issues of the educational process of children, issues related to the payment of pensions and so on are dealt with.

The vast majority of employees of the Mykhailivka Settlement Council are now living and working in Zaporizhia. The Administrative Services Centre is functioning.

There is a free hairdresser and laundry for internally displaced persons; humanitarian aid is regularly provided by various non-governmental organizations and charitable funds (Dream Country, Adra charity organization, Smile UA).

A considerable number of residents of the Mykhailivka Community are fighting in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Some of the local warriors are prisoners, some are missing. The Community leadership supports them and their families, provides material aid.

People of the Community

Volodymyr Rykun, the Settlement Council Head of the Mykhailivka Community, was elected to the position in 2020. During the full-scale russian invasion of Ukraine, when russian troops entered Mykhailivka, Volodymyr Rykun was kidnapped and held captive for three weeks. After his release, he left for Zaporizhia, where he currently works and performs his duties.

In Zaporizhia, where the Mykhailivka Settlement Council is currently located, it periodically initiates the holding of various sports events in cooperation with nongovernmental organizations.

For example, on 28 July 2023, a beach soccer tournament “Move to the Victory of Ukraine!” was held on the occasion of the Day of Ukrainian Statehood in the city of Zaporizhia, on the central city beach, in cooperation with the Kolos nongovernmental organization.

The Mykhailivka Community supports the volunteer movement, provides material aid to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Police, and the National Guard.

The Mykhailivka Settlement Council participated in the international exhibition “Reconstruction of Ukraine” on the “B2B Italia” platform, where it presented its reconstruction projects after de-occupation.

Also, the Community representatives actively participate in educational trainings, for example, on project management, and take part in public events, for instance, in the round-table meeting “Strengthening the capacity of communities to participate in the processes of recovery and development of de-occupied territories”.

Many courageous people come from the Mykhailivka Community. For instance, Serhii Dorohokuplia, a firefighter who worked since 2017 when the 34th state fire and rescue unit (for the protection of Mykhailivka) was created. Serhii died together with his partner as a result of a repeated rocket attack while performing their official duties on the site of the shelling.

Warrior Viacheslav Yeremenko died in the war zone while remaining faithful to his military oath. Viacheslav was born and grew up in the village of Pryshyb.

Development Strategy

Although the Community is under temporary occupation, the Mykhailivka Settlement Council is actively preparing for its recovery and reconstruction after de-occupation. The Plan of priority reconstruction measures after de-occupation has already been developed. The need for material and technical resources has been determined, as they will be extremely necessary in the first month of work after de-occupation and in the near future of the Community recovery, given the current situation.

The Mykhailivka Settlement Council is successfully working on expanding the network of its partners. Memorandums of cooperation with international and nongovernmental organizations, charitable foundations, and institutions of higher education have been signed. In November 2023, the Mykhailivka Settlement Council passed a competitive selection for participation in the project “Communication with residents on the TOT”, on which it is currently working.

After de-occupation, work will be resumed to create a land management project for establishing the boundaries of the territory of the Mykhailivka Territorial Community; the reconstruction of water supply networks and sewage treatment plants will be launched, and the green energy sector (solar and wind power plants) will be developed.

List of Sources

• Official website of the Mykhailivka Settlement Council: mihajlivska.gromada.org.ua 
• Official Telegram channel of the Mykhailivka Community: t.me/mih_gromada 
• Ukrainska Pravda: pravda.com.ua
• Official website of the Zaporizhia Regional State Administration: zoda.gov.ua
• Regionnews: news agency: regionnews.net.ua