This year, the construction of a kindergarten in Bilevo-2 and the reconstruction of a building in Rube into a polyclinic and hospital will begin in Vitebsk

The investment program of Vitebsk for 2014 has been approved in the amount of almost 146.1 billion rubles (or 6.5% of the city budget expenditures) and includes 58 facilities. Compared to 2013, the volume of capital investments has increased by more than a third (in dollar equivalent), and the list of projects has expanded by about a quarter. At the same time, the city intends to concentrate resources on facilities already under construction and, where possible, refrain from new constructions.

According to the Chairman of the City Executive Committee, Viktor Nikolaikin, this approach dominated the formation of the investment program for the next budget year. Among the new facilities, work on which will begin this year, the head of the city highlighted only the construction of a preschool institution in the Bilevo-2 microdistrict, as well as the reconstruction of a building in Ruba to accommodate a polyclinic and hospital. The main priorities of the investment program remain unchanged, while their share in the total funding has been adjusted.

Traditionally, the largest investment support from the city program is allocated to housing and communal services and housing construction. This year, almost 97 billion rubles are envisaged for these purposes, or 66.3% of budget investments in fixed assets, which is almost 8 percentage points more than in 2013. In the regional center, in particular, the reconstruction of Moskovsky Prospekt and Tereshkova Street, the pedestrian streets of Suvorov and Gogol, facilities of the communal enterprise "Vitebskgorpodovoshtorg", landscaping of park and courtyard areas, and financing of the construction of an underpass near the Summer Amphitheater will continue. The issue of relocating citizens from dilapidated housing also remains relevant for the city.

The second priority in terms of funding is culture, which will receive about 18.4 billion rubles. The share of expenses for this sector will be 12.6%, which is slightly less than last year. The funds are planned to be directed to the construction of a zoo, the reconstruction of the Vitebsk Concert Hall and the Summer Amphitheater, in particular, the arrangement of a lounge for VIPs in its guest box, as well as an administrative building at Pravdy St., 5a, an architectural monument at Srednenaberezhnaya St., 7 for the "House of Urban Culture and Life of the late 19th - early 20th centuries".

Investments in healthcare and education facilities will amount to 8.1% and 8.4% respectively, while compared to 2013, the share of healthcare expenses will decrease by almost half, and for educational institutions, it will increase by approximately the same proportion. Among the healthcare facilities included in the program are the reconstruction of the therapeutic building of the city emergency hospital, the health center of city polyclinic No. 6, and several others. In addition to the start of construction of a kindergarten in Bilevo-2, investments in the educational sector will be directed to the reconstruction of the administrative building at Zolotogorskaya St., 3a and Children's Art School No. 6.

Unlike 2013, the investment program for the current year does not include such notable facilities as the Palace of Ceremonies, underground passage No. 2 on P. Brovka St., Gagarin Street, the Severny Bridge.

Sergey Kochetov, "Vitebskiye vesti"