City councillors closed just one nursery in Mykolaiv: proposals to close the other two were rejected
- News of Mykolaiv
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- Julia Lukyanenko
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16:16, 30 April, 2026
The Mykolaiv City Council voted to close just one nursery school. Photo: NikVestiFollowing discussions, members of the Mykolaiv City Council voted to close just one nursery — №138 on Oleh Kravets Street in Balabanivka. The votes on the other two — №104 and №128 — failed to secure the necessary majority.
This was discussed at the City Council session today, 30 April, according to NikVesti.
Regarding Kindergarten №138 (79 Oleh Kravets Street), the head of the Education Department, Hanna Lychko, said that the kindergarten has not been operating since the start of the war. However, they were unable to resume classes there as there are no facilities to provide shelter, including the ability to construct one. According to Hanna Lychko, the kindergarten is designed to accommodate only 26 children.
Councillor Olena Kiseliova noted that during the war, whilst there were no children at the nursery, they continued to pay two-thirds of the staff’s salaries.
«Yes, we kept everyone on furlough, except for the caretaker. Our nursery also has its own boiler room. We were operating on a limited basis, but we did provide heating,» confirmed Hanna Lychko.
In addition, the councillor asked whether there were waiting lists for nurseries, including in the Korabelnyi district. The head of the education department confirmed that there are no waiting lists in the city; in fact, there are even places available.
«As this nursery is located in Balabanivka, the nearest nurseries our children attend are numbers 101 and 134. But parents choose for themselves. We actually have no waiting lists in the Korabelnyi district… I’ll tell you more: I would like to see more children in existing full-time nurseries. There are free places available,» said Hanna Lychko.
She also confirmed that there is no question of privatisation.
«We are not selling them, nor are we putting them up for privatisation. That is absolutely not within our remit. At the moment, this building is under operational management. That’s all. It is up to the community to decide,» said Hanna Lychko.
Councillor Dmytro Sichko also believed that the buildings should be preserved for other purposes.
«After the war, we must keep the buildings for the potential, perhaps, accommodation of other social facilities, including, possibly, renovated nurseries, when there is another opportunity and financial capacity,» said Dmytro Sichko.
The mayor confirmed that the buildings need to be mothballed, and in winter they will be kept at minimum heating levels. Privatisation is not currently on the agenda.
«There were times when we were looking for premises for nurseries. In 2018 and 2017, we even considered purchasing some buildings for a nursery. There was a need, there were waiting lists, and the groups were overcrowded. It may well be that the war will end in the near future, people will start returning, and in 2–3 years there will be children who need to be sent to nursery. Or the number of IDPs living in Mykolaiv will increase. The issue of privatisation is not on the table at the moment. We are not addressing this issue right now. We are winding up legal entities that are currently effectively employing people who receive salaries,» the mayor noted.
In addition, councillor Olena Kiseliova emphasised that whilst nursery teachers were receiving two-thirds of their salaries, child welfare services were looking for carers for children who had been removed from their families and were in hospital. There is no other shelter for them.
«They are being placed in hospitals. But a hospital is a medical facility staffed by doctors, not nursery teachers. Were nursery teachers involved in this process during the downtime? Because there was downtime when the nursery was damaged; there was an emergency, and staff came to clear the debris, performing a socially significant function. What happened to the nursery teachers? Were they going about their business at the time and receiving two-thirds of their pay, or were they involved in other operations in the city of Mykolaiv?» asked the councillor.
Mykolaiv City Council member Olena Kiseliova. Screenshot from the broadcastIn 2022, according to Hanna Lychko, nursery teachers were involved. But there are currently vacancies in nurseries.
«Let me put it this way: even today, we have vacancies in nurseries. We have been constantly asking the heads of nurseries that have not resumed the educational process to send their staff to work in those that are currently operating. Unfortunately, we still have vacancies today. We cannot force them to move to other educational institutions,» replied Hanna Lychko.
Regarding the recruitment of nursery teachers to hospitals, the head of the education department said that two nursery teachers had apparently agreed, but then refused during the interview.
Councillor Oleksandr Bereza believed that the city needs to create conditions for families with children to return after the war. Councillor Andrii Yantar noted that if nursery teachers are turning down vacant posts, staff numbers need to be optimised and posts cut.
Furthermore, Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych stated that the Capital Assets Department cannot raise the issue of privatising nurseries.
«It is important to note that neither the Education Department nor the Municipal Property Department decides on the privatisation of individual buildings or structures. This matter is decided exclusively by the City Council. The issue may be raised by the Municipal Property Department and discussed in committee. But the decision will be made by the councillors,» the mayor reiterated.
In total, councillors cast 29 votes in favour of closing nursery school №138. The decision was adopted.
Another nursery — №128 — at 62-A Pavlo Skoropadskyi Street is designed for 78 children. According to Hanna Lychko, the buildings were constructed before 1917 and have no basement. Most of the nursery staff have moved to other institutions. In 2025, 2.5 million hryvnias were spent on maintaining the nursery.
Councillor Olena Kiseliova noted that as the nursery was located in a residential building, it could be used for foster families or internally displaced persons. Councillor Yurii Stepanets asked whether this meant it was impossible to fit out a basement shelter or any kind of shelter at all.
Session of the Mykolaiv City Council. Screenshot from the broadcastHanna Lychko replied that there were no shelters in kindergartens before the war. During a state of emergency, the simplest shelters, i.e. those in basements, can be used. But overall, Kindergarten №128 does not even have the capacity to build a shelter, and there is none within 500 metres.
«We cannot get the children to a shelter in five minutes. Not to mention that they need to be dressed, put their shoes on and taken there quickly,» said Hanna Lychko.
She also reported that 28 nurseries have no shelters and that proposals regarding other establishments will be put forward.
Only 24 councillors voted in favour of closing nursery school №128. The decision was not passed.
Similarly, no decision was taken regarding Kindergarten №104 on Torgova Street. Its maintenance cost 2.6 million hryvnias in 2025. According to Hanna Lychko, before the war there were around 60 children there, whilst it is designed for 31 children. The nearest nursery is No. 140. There is no waiting list for this nursery.
However, the issue of nursery staff who were paid during the closure has arisen again.
«We started to find out why they aren’t coming to us. The thing is, most people have found informal jobs elsewhere. So here they’re officially on our books, their service record counts, but there… In other words, they had no desire to go to the nurseries that are opening,» said Hanna Lychko.
Overall, councillors calculated that over four years, the city had spent 29 million hryvnias on maintaining three closed nurseries.
Serhii Kantor noted that they could have made the decision to close them down earlier. But the mayor pointed out that this was a political decision and an unpopular one. Previously, they had been counting on the war ending; now they are looking for ways to save money.
The head of the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration and city councillor Vitalii Kim supported maintaining salaries during the closure, as it is not the people’s fault that the war is ongoing.
«Although I am in favour of economising and believe that everything should be directed towards defence, on this particular issue, I think we should pay the staff of closed nurseries during the downtime. This is the right thing to do. Salaries are paid during downtime in the ports and at shipyards. These expenses are funds provided to citizens during forced downtime. It is not their fault that they are not working due to the aggression of the Russian Federation,» said Vitalii Kim.
He then called on the mayor and councillors to economise on the budget, as, in his view, a very difficult economic situation awaits Ukraine in the future.
Only 26 councillors voted in favour of closing nursery school №104. In other words, the decision was not passed.
«We talked and talked, sat down and burst into tears,» summed up the mayor.
Why does Mykolaiv want to close three nurseries?
The Mykolaiv Education Department initiated a decision to close three nurseries: №104 (a nursery on Torhova Street in the Korabelnyi district), №128 (a nursery-kindergarten at the junction of Mariupolska and Pavlo Skoropadskyi Streets (formerly Admiral Makarov Street)) and №138 (a nursery-kindergarten on Oleh Kravets Street in Balabanivka). The official reason is the lack of and impossibility of installing shelters. This means that if the motion is passed at the session, such educational establishments will no longer exist in Mykolaiv, and their total number will decrease.
During the committee meeting, the chair of the education committee, Hanna Nord, stated that it is the institutions themselves that are being proposed for closure , whilst the buildings will remain the property of the city.
And following the closure of the three pre-school educational establishments, initiated by the Mykolaiv Education Department, the Municipal Property Management Department and the City Council will decide how to use them.
What do city councillors think about the closure?
Councillor Olena Kiseliova supported the rationale behind closing the preschools, stating that it is not cost-effective for the city to maintain them. She says that there is a broader issue behind the closure than the fact that they lack shelters and it is impossible to build them there. During the war, the institutions have been idle, but all this time it has been necessary to maintain the buildings and staff.
Councillor Artem Iliuk stated that he could support the legal closure of the three kindergartens, but said he would not support the subsequent privatisation of these buildings.
Tamila Buhaenko, former deputy mayor of Mykolaiv, also commented on the Education Department’s proposal to close the three nurseries. She believes this could lead to a shortage of places in pre-school facilities once the war ends.
Yurii Hranaturov, Mayor of Mykolaiv from 2014 to 2016, stated that the issue of kindergartens is critically important for the city, especially given the changing demographics and the renewed demand for pre-school education. According to him, the situation with kindergartens in Mykolaiv has already gone through various phases on numerous occasions — from a surplus to a shortage of places.
Hanna Remennikova, a member of the Mykolaiv City Council, believes that if some kindergartens are closed down and subsequently privatised, the funds generated should be directed towards modernising existing facilities.
Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych said that there is currently no talk of privatising kindergartens.
Photo report
Hanna Remennikova, a member of the Mykolaiv City Council, and Oleksandr Bereza, head of the Central District Administration and a councillor. Photo: NikVesti
Mayor of Mykolaiv Oleksandr Sienkevych. Photo: NikVesti
Hanna Remennikova, a member of the Mykolaiv City Council. Photo: NikVesti
City councillor Maria Gracheva. Photo: NikVesti
Secretary of the Mykolaiv City Council, Dmytro Falco. Photo: NikVesti
Mayor of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Sienkevych. Photo: NikVesti
Olena Kiseliova, member of the Mykolaiv City Council and chair of the European Solidarity faction. Photo: NikVesti
Hanna Remennikova, Member of the Mykolaiv City Council, and Oleksandr Bereza, Head of the Central District Administration and Member of the City Council. Photo: NikVesti 
A session of the Mykolaiv City Council on 30 April. Photo: NikVesti