In Mykolaiv, strength training equipment worth ₴3.5 million is being purchased for the municipal gym in «Zoria»

There are plans to purchase professional strength training equipment, worth 3.5 million hryvnias, for the gym at the «Zoria» sports complex in Mykolaiv.

This is according to data from the ProZorro e-procurement system, as reported by NikVesti.

The list comprises 44 items, according to the tender documentation. Specifically, these include a block frame, a four-position station, machines for the legs, chest, back and abs, a Smith machine, a leg press, a hook machine, hyperextension machines and benches.

Separate provisions have been made for free weights equipment – racks and sets of dumbbells, discs, several types of barbells and collars. They also wish to purchase step platforms, wall bars and Yevminov exercise machines.

One of the items is a biceps machine that can be used from a wheelchair.

The client is the municipal institution «Central City Stadium». The equipment is to be delivered by 31 December 2026.

This is the second major purchase of equipment for the «Zoria» gym in recent times. In September, the «Central City Stadium» announced a tender worth 1.4 million hryvnias for 12 pieces of cardio equipment — five treadmills, two elliptical trainers, two exercise bikes, a stepper, a rowing machine and a ski machine.

If both procurements go ahead at the expected cost, around 4.9 million hryvnias are planned to be allocated for equipment for the ‘Zoria’ gym.

These exercise machines are being purchased for the new gym at the «Zoria» sports complex, Viacheslav Misarenko, director of the municipal institution «Central City Stadium», told NikVesti.

«We plan to open the gyms in December. Tender procedures are currently underway. The order for the fitness equipment has been split into three parts: the first tender, the first part of which has already been completed — we are preparing the contract. We will be conducting tender procedures for the second and third parts of the order,» he said.

All residents of Mykolaiv who wish to do so will be able to use the gym’s facilities. The cost of sessions is still being finalised, said Viacheslav Misarenko.

«There are no exact figures yet,» he added.

It is worth noting that the «Central City Stadium» municipal institution, in response to an information request from NikVesti, had previously reported that it plans to purchase exercise equipment for the «Zoria» sports complex in 2026.

«These are exercise machines for public use, including for people with reduced mobility. The machines will be installed in the gyms currently being refurbished by the Capital Construction Department. Funding of 4,549,546 hryvnias has been earmarked for the purchase of the exercise equipment,» the stadium management stated.

They also stated that this year, «Zoria» plans to repair the roof and prepare the surface and drainage system for the installation of new artificial turf on the football pitch.

It should be noted that in 2025, 4.3 million hryvnias were spent on the major refurbishment of two sports halls at the «Zoria» sports complex in Mykolaiv.

Renovation of the «Zoria» sports complex

The process of transferring «Zoria» to the city’s ownership began back in August 2018. Two years later, in March 2020, the sports complex was transferred to the municipal ownership of Mykolaiv. At the same time, the state-owned enterprise «Ukroboronprom» compensated the city with 5 million hryvnias for the renovation of «Zoria».

Following the transfer of the sports complex, Oleksandr Sienkevych promised to reopen the «Zoria» swimming pool in autumn 2020. However, the work was delayed. In autumn 2021, the City Council’s Capital Construction Department announced a tender for the major refurbishment and restoration of the «Zoria» sports complex, with an estimated cost of 94,915,520 hryvnias.

In December 2021, Deputy Mayor Vitalii Lukov stated that the refurbishment of the «Zoria» sports complex would not be completed until at least the second half of 2022. Later, during the refurbishment of the swimming pool at the «Zoria» sports complex, seven cracks were discovered in the pool basin.

Subsequently, the mayor of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Sienkevych, announced that the «Zoria» sports complex would open in February 2022. Due to the outbreak of full-scale war, the completion of the works and the opening of the swimming pool were postponed once again.

In May 2023, the first swim took place in the refurbished pool at the «Zoria» sports complex in Mykolaiv.

Prior to this, the mayor, Oleksandr Sienkevych, inspected the swimming pool. He explained that the refurbishment of the sports complex is taking place in two phases. The first phase involved the refurbishment of the swimming pool basin, changing rooms and other technical facilities necessary for the pool’s operation. The second phase, which is still ongoing, involves renovating the sports hall and changing rooms, insulating the building and carrying out other works.

Mosaics on the «Zoria» building

Recently, NikVesti discovered that the mosaic panels on the «Zoria» sports complex in Mykolaiv are to be left on the walls but completely covered by a ventilated facade made of aluminium composite panels. Once the renovation is complete, it will be impossible to see the mosaics from the street. Activists and researchers of monumental art are asking the city to reconsider this decision. This is not simply a matter of renovating or repainting the façade. According to the plans, the external walls of «Zoria» are to be insulated with mineral wool boards, after which a ventilated façade system will be installed and the building clad with aluminium composite panels.

Oleksii Savchuk, Head of the Capital Construction Department, explained to NikVesti that the department, together with the designers, had prepared around 20 options for the facade’s design, and the Department of Architecture and Urban Planning had approved one of them. According to him, had the architectural department advocated leaving the mosaic exposed, the Capital Construction Department, together with the designers, would have sought an appropriate technical solution.

During the session on 27 August, Mykolaiv’s mayor, Oleksandr Sшenkevych, instructed officials to prepare a plan and design drawings for the preservation of the mosaic panels at the «Zoria» sports complex.

However, Mykolaiv’s chief architect, Yevhen Polшakov, noted that the fate of the mosaics at the «Zoria» sports complex would be reviewed, as major refurbishment works are not currently being carried out due to a lack of funding. This, he said, allows time to assess the situation and explore options for their preservation.