Park
Maxim Gorky Park for Culture and Recreation
Maxim Gorky Park for Culture and Recreation is open, but not completely. The rides do not work and many of the food facilities are closed. People are still a little bit scared to be out for a long time in the open air, especially with kids, said Andrii Shaptala, deputy director for international relations at Gorky Park.
But, little by little, life is coming back to Gorky Park. The weather is good, the flowers are in bloom, the swans are on the lake. “You know, people need to go somewhere and enjoy these nice days,” Shaptala said.
These spring days are different from last year’s, the first months of Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Russian forces sent missiles and cluster bombs into neighborhoods for weeks. Even as Russia pulled back from other regions in the spring, the Kremlin’s campaign in the east and south of Ukraine kept Kharkiv a target through the summer. It put the city within close range of mortars and heavy artillery. In May, Gorky Park was struck, apparently by Soviet-made GRAD rockets launched from trucks. According to the park’s press secretary Andrii Kravchenko, Russian rockets hit the park more than 70 times, including twice by missile strikes, since the start of the war.
Even in the worst days of the war, the employees and crews still came in, Shaptala said. “When you see all those things that you put so much attention and effort into, and it is being destroyed, burned down, damaged — it’s very sad,” he said.
Gorky Park has been rebuilt before. The park, named for the Russian writer Maxim Gorky, was severely damaged during World War II. It fell into disrepair by the end of the 1980s. In 2011, the park underwent a massive renovation and reopened in August 2012.
The newer, more advanced Gorky Park was amazing, said Lubnan Sheykkh, a tech entrepreneur. He and his family used to go all the time, especially in summer. He…
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