I.Metshin: “It is important for us that residents of all city districts have a landscaped park or square near their home”

Kazan Mayor inspects the construction of the boulevard on Serova Street, which will have a sensory garden and a playground accessible for disabled children.

Construction of a boulevard has begun on Serova Street in the Moskovsky district of Kazan with a walking area of 3.5-hectare from the Yardem Mosque to Voskhod Street. As part of the first stage, illegal parking has been eliminated on the territory of 1.5 hectares near the Yardem Mosque, utilities and storm sewer networks are being laid. It is planned to open the first part of the boulevard in autumn. The painting “Girl with Peaches” by famous Russian artist Valentin Serov was taken as a basis for the color design of the square. The progress of the work was inspected today by the Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin. The Mayor instructed to pay special attention to the creation of an inclusive environment so that the new public space would be accessible for people with disabilities.

Ilsur Metshin noted that every year existing parks and squares are being renovated in Kazan, as well as new green areas are landscaped. “This is our conscious strategy for the formation of the green framework of the city, thanks to which in 5 years we have grown by 17 new parks and squares. Today their total area has exceeded 531 hectares. This year, 8 public spaces in different parts of Kazan will be improved,”- the Mayor reminded.

The first part of the public space with an area of 1.5 hectares will have a sensory garden with small architectural forms, a playground accessible for children with disabilities, areas for socializing and playing boccia, as well as a wide bike path. Now preparatory and dismantling works are being carried out on the boulevard.

“We are trying to create necessary conditions for residents with disabilities in all parks. But this park will be special – there is a mosque nearby, there is a society of the blind and deaf in the neighborhood. Therefore, the park should collect the best inclusive practices. It will be a new cozy urban space,”- I. Metshin said.

Deputy Head of the Executive Committee of the city Igor Kulyazhev said that before starting work on the improvement of the boulevard on Serova Street, the experience of adapting public spaces for people with disabilities was studied. “The architects studied practices and attended conferences, including the St. Petersburg School for the visually impaired. They learned what equipment is needed, what paths and other elements should be – everything necessary for people with disabilities. Experts have created a project on this basis,”- he said.

For example, a sensory garden will be created, in which various tactile tiles for visually impaired people will be laid, and a sound navigation system will be installed. A playground will also be equipped, including with special elements for children with disabilities, one of the slides will be roller. It will work only in summer. There will also be a quiet area for communication, a playground for playing boccia – this was requested by our people with disabilities.

According to architect Vitaly Volkov, during the development of the project, special attention was paid to the integration of elements for comfortable pastime in the public space. “This park will contribute to the rehabilitation of people with disabilities – various equipment will be adapted for them,”- he said.

The color scheme for the boulevard is very gentle, but sometimes contrasting – with the help of bright colors, visually impaired people will be able to better navigate in space. “Since the boulevard is located on Serova Street, named after the artist, we decided to take the color scheme from one of his famous paintings “Girl with Peaches”. Peach, gray and other pastel colors prevail,”- said Vitaly Volkov. He added that in the course of research, experts came to the conclusion that Braille is ineffective in public places, and in winter it is not used at all by the visually impaired. Therefore, it was decided to replace it with buttons with a loud sound alert.

The lake will be improved as part of the second stage. “The lake has an interesting history. Now we are exploring it to understand what is the source of its existence, but we also assume that there is groundwater here. It is important for us to discover more about this lake to preserve a beautiful form so that it does not silt up,”- said Kamil Zakirov, head of Municipal Unitary Enterprise “Gorodskoe blagoustroistvo”. A lot of work is planned on landscaping the territory.

After the completion of all construction works, an inclusive event program will be developed for the new boulevard. It is planned to host traditional bicycle races for children with disabilities here, which are organized by the Directorate of Parks and Squares of Kazan together with the Charity Foundation Alpari. Screenings of audio describer films will also be organized, said the head of the directorate Aigul Latypova. “We really want people coming here not to feel comfortable- so that everything is accessible and open for them,”- she stressed.