A columbarium with 228 spaces to be built at a Mykolaiv cemetery for ₴4 million

Plans are in place to build a columbarium at the Balabanivske Cemetery in the Korabelnyi district of Mykolaiv. Photo: DREAM system

Plans are in place to build a columbarium at the Balabanivskyi Cemetery in the Korabelnyi district of Mykolaiv. It will have 228 niches for storing urns containing the ashes of the deceased.

The construction and project preparation are expected to cost over 4 million hryvnias, according to NikVesti, citing project data from the state DREAM system.

At present, there is no specially designated area at the Balabanivske Cemetery for storing urns containing ashes. The cemetery is predominantly used for traditional burials. The city therefore intends to construct a separate structure that will allow urns to be placed in special niches.

According to the preliminary plan, the columbarium will take the form of a 2.5-metre-high wall. The structure itself will cover an area of around 33 square metres, whilst a total plot of 561 square metres will be allocated for the project.

There are plans to lay paving slabs for footpaths nearby, plant trees and shrubs, and install lighting. Provision has also been made for rainwater drainage to prevent the area from becoming waterlogged. The columbarium is to be made easily accessible, particularly for people with disabilities and other visitors with reduced mobility.

The estimated cost of constructing the columbarium is over 4 million hryvnias. Of this, around 3.6 million hryvnias is earmarked for the construction work itself. The Mykolaiv development budget has been identified in the financial documents as a possible source of funding. At the same time, the city authorities are using the DREAM system to seek a donor who could potentially fund this work.

As a reminder, there are 16 registered cemeteries in Mykolaiv. The city budget has allocated 24.3 million гривень for their upkeep and routine repairs in 2026.

In Mykolaiv, construction of a columbarium on the grounds of the Central City Cemetery has already been completed. It has been officially commissioned. The facility features 156 niches for urns. It is noted that the project cost 2.7 million hryvnias.

As Serhii Vasyleha, director of the municipal enterprise «Mykolaiv Funeral Service», told NikVesti, as there are only three crematoria in Ukraine, the deceased are transported from Mykolaiv to Odesa.

Back in 2021, Vitalii Kim, head of the Mykolaiv region, expressed the view that a crematorium should be built on the border with the Kherson region.

It was also reported that the Land Resources Department had drawn up a draft resolution for the Mykolaiv City Council to allocate a plot of land for permanent use for the maintenance of the cemetery. The area in question is near the Starovodopiiske Cemetery on Kazarskyi Street.

At the Central City Cemetery, known to Mykolaiv residents as the Mishkovske Cemetery, there are no plots available for burials in the honour section. It is proposed to expand the cemetery grounds by relocating the fence.