Various interest groups, fitness and youth space: how the Bashtanka Culture House was restored after the battle with the Russians

The expression «Hell with the tanks — we are from Bashtanka» made the city of the same name in the Mykolaiv region famous. Many people know the story of how in March 2022 local residents stopped a convoy of enemy armored vehicles and prevented the Russians from occupying the city.

After that, the Russians decided to take revenge for their defeat and mercilessly fired at the Bashtanka. At that time, many homes of local residents and buildings were damaged. The local cultural center was also destroyed during the shelling.

However, this did not deter the citizens of Bashtanka and they began to gradually rebuild the city. They also restored the cultural center, which became both a volunteer center and a center for recreation and development.

Read about how the reconstruction process took place in the NikVesti article.

The Russians fired at the city with everything they had

After the battle for the city, Bashtanka was bombarded daily with hail, tornadoes and other weapons. One of the most powerful enemy attacks on Bashtanka occurred on March 13, 2022, when an enemy plane dropped six 250-kilogram high-explosive bombs. After massive shelling in the city, administrative buildings and pharmacies were damaged, more than a hundred residential buildings were destroyed, 21 of which were beyond restoration.

From June 6 to 7, 2022, about 5 rockets flew over the city. Then the local cultural center suffered a lot: the roof was demolished, windows and doors were broken, and the walls and ceiling were damaged.

After that, the local residents were able to partially restore the roof, which was destroyed again by the explosion in July 2022, on their own.

«The most difficult was June 7, 2022. It hit into the administration and the roof was blown off by the wave. All the windows and doors flew out. The suspended ceiling was destroyed, all the profiles were broken. The sight was terrible. Then it flew to the administration, to the stadium. We started to clean everything, and then on July 5 it hit into the city council. The cultural center is literally next door, so the roof was damaged again. Again, everything was covered and patched. Our entire team worked without days off, without vacations. We restored and repaired everything ourselves. Volunteers and caring people also came,» says the director of the cultural center Olha Kramarenko.

The cultural center started working again with the help of benefactors

Benefactors also joined in the restoration of the Bashtanka House of Culture. International partners from USAID DOBRE helped purchase the necessary materials, metal roof tiles and double-glazed windows. And the community has already financed the works.

«We already have a new roof. A suspended ceiling has already been installed. The door was restored,» adds Olha Kramarenko.

From the end of 2022, the institution began to work and receive visitors. In addition to vocal and theater groups, people could do Pilates and fitness, as well as receive volunteer assistance from UNICEF.

«We are a little short of personnel. In total, we have 17 teams. In our cultural center there are 6 national and 1 exemplary team. There are dance, theater and vocal groups. There are all genres, except circus. There is a fine art studio for children, a folk studio for adult masters. There is also a brass band, but the leader is now protecting our country. We hold various events. There is a club «Young in heart» — it is for people of a respectable age. It is visited by up to 60 people. IDPs also come to us, children come to different teams. We take part in regional and all-Ukrainian competitions. For 11 years, our institution has held the first place in the Mykolaiv region in the rating of participation in events,» she says.

Volunteers also come to the cultural center to weave nets and help collect funds for the Armed Forces.

«We have been making nets for a long time. In 2022, we had things for displaced people and victims, because we have people who are left without a home at all. The staff of the institution also helped unload humanitarian aid, packaged it, and distributed it to the population. We also made candles, baked pies, and sent them to the front to our compatriots. Now we are weaving nets,» says the director of the institution.

The basement of the cultural center is not just a shelter, but a creative workshop and space for young people

About 300 participants of various ages attend the groups at the cultural center. However, as Iryna Botezat, head of the development and tourism department of the Bashtanka City Council's executive committee, says, local youth are poorly engaged, they lack space for leisure. Therefore, the city decided to equip a basement for their needs.

The cultural center has a basement, which they wanted to renovate and use as the simplest shelter. Building materials were provided by the Foundation «Partnership for a Strong Ukraine». But during the renovation, the plans changed a little and scaled up, says Iryna Botezat.

«At first it was made as the simplest shelter. And then we went into excitement, saw that it is also an additional creative space,» she adds.

In addition to charitable assistance, money was drawn from the local budget to make the basement comfortable and multifunctional. Currently, a tender for 445 thousand 387 hryvnias has already been held for the completion of all construction works. The contractor must hand over the object by May 12. Next, the premises will be equipped with furniture and everything necessary.

«We want it to be not just the simplest shelter, but also an additional space for young people and children. There will be children's furniture, board games. So that people can spend time there playing with children,» says Iryna Botezat.

The basement is designed for about 300 people. It has a large hall, three rooms and a corridor. Citizens will be able to enter the shelter from two entrances — one from the building, and the other from the yard. Ventilation is installed in the premises. The entrances are also equipped with ramps for the convenience of visitors with special needs. According to the head of the development and tourism department, at the session the community plans to allocate funds for heating. In addition, they want to involve local youth in the renovation, who will paint the walls of the basement.

«Summer is coming and our youth and children have nowhere to gather. And here they will find something to do. I want the youth to join the process themselves. I think if they put in the effort in the basement themselves, they'll appreciate it more. When they paint it the way they see it,» she says.

Also, in the large hall of the basement, they want to equip a hall with a rubber surface for fitness classes, but for this it is necessary to find charitable funds.

«There is still a large hall there. The local budget cannot allocate funds to us. But if we write a project, we can create some kind of fitness hall so that it is free and accessible,» adds Iryna Botezat.

In total, since 2022, 211 cultural institutions, architectural monuments and religious buildings have been damaged in the Mykolaiv region, 23 objects have been completely destroyed. As of April 2024, 40% of damaged cultural institutions have been restored. The Bashtanka House of Culture survived the difficult times of shelling, but it persevered and opened its doors to visitors. It has become an important center of public life, where various cultural, educational and leisure activities are held.

Alona Kokhanchuk, NikVesti