In The Robin Report, Mark Faithfull details the restoration efforts taken to save the Nikolsky Shopping and Entertainment Center in Kharkiv, Ukraine, after the mall was hit by a Russian missile. He writes:
According to Maksym Havriushyn, the mall’s COO, the decision to push ahead with the restoration process began despite the fact that Russian troops were just around six miles from Kharkiv. He emphasized the importance of reopening before winter, so the building would remain usable, and to restore infrastructure when much of the city’s retail was shut. He also noted the mall’s role in offering both shelter and a return to normalcy. The total cost of restoration approached $18 million, while overall losses, including depreciation, reached around an estimated $150 million.
The revitalized mall saw its visitor numbers rebound, and by February 19 this year, the Nikolsky Center had welcomed its 30 millionth visitor since opening. That is all the more remarkable given that currently the city’s population is estimated to be less than half of the 1.5 million who lived there pre-war. Resilience is a powerful mindset; the mall and bars remain busy, with the city’s epithet ‘unbreakable’ seen everywhere.
Read more here.
