Alexander Rozbaum answered Novgorod residents' "green" questions live on air

While spring has given way to summer, Novgorodians and visitors to the regional center enjoy every moment of changing colors and views, walking along the embankments and in the parks. Meanwhile, city services are actively engaged in the improvement of public areas, responding to residents' requests. Some of the questions on this topic were voiced and commented on by Mayor Alexander Rozbaum during his recent live broadcast - in addition to personal receptions, the head of the city continues to keep in touch with Novgorodians online.

This time, the mayor answered questions from residents during a stream in the Veliky Novgorod administration group on VKontakte together with the first deputy governor of the Novgorod region, Yevgeny Bogdanov. Residents asked the latter in the comments about social entrepreneurship, progress in exports, events of the governor's project "Novgorod Summer" and much more. Many questions this time concerned the maintenance of public spaces and the greenery of the city. Alexander Rozbaum gave explanations on them.

"Why do they mow the grass in the morning and even on a day off? What about the law "On silence?" asked one of the subscribers of the administration's VK page.

The answer, according to the mayor, is both complex and simple. The main difficulty is related to the active overgrowing of lawns and the lack of personnel.

"Today, during the period of active grass growth, we do not have enough human resources. There are not enough people working with trimmers in the ranks of the "City Economy", and in the management companies, and for mowing in the territories of undivided use - to conscientiously carry out these seasonal works in the allotted hours within the framework of permanent labor relations or a civil law contract. Therefore, we have to increase the pace as much as possible," noted Alexander ROZBAUM. - In addition, it is easier for employees to work in the morning, especially when it is hot. As for the personnel issue, we are actively recruiting specialists both in the MBU "City Economy" and in the MAU "Parks of Veliky Novgorod". We offer a fairly decent salary plus incentive bonuses for overtime, we are ready to pay."

Another question also concerned the condition of the lawns. A resident noted that some areas still looked overgrown, with the grass "waist-high".

The mayor specified that the control and administrative department of the Veliky Novgorod administration monitors the fulfillment of obligations in city squares, in the territories of apartment buildings, where the management companies are responsible, the state housing inspectorate monitors, and representatives of the relevant businesses monitor the lawns in the area of ​​shops and cafes.

Nevertheless, Aleksandr Rozbaum emphasized, the city strives to approach the task comprehensively, and the general situation is still under the control of the mayor's office. Thus, the maintenance of lawns in proper condition is controlled by the committee for the management of urban and road facilities, and the committee for economic development and investment is working on this issue with commercial organizations.

"I also move around the city a lot, both by car and on foot. Yes, there is a certain feeling of neglect in certain places. Where landscaping workers have already been, the lawns look decent. And in areas where they have not been mown yet, the question immediately arises: "When will order be restored here too?" In such situations, we sort things out, contact the persons responsible for a specific area, be it a store or a management company. This is systematic work. In winter, we have snow, and in summer, grass. The bar is quite high, it was set for us by the residents themselves. Therefore, we continue to work. In the near future, we will adjust it, the number of people will increase," the head of the city assured.

He also added that there is an agreement with the management of Novgorod State University to involve some students in the work as part of their summer work experience. According to the mayor, there is enough equipment and inventory for this.

Another "green" question concerned the beloved Lilac Garden in the area of ​​Znamenskaya Street. Walks here at the end of May and beginning of June have become a tradition for city residents and even some tourists. This year, the Lilac Garden is closed, and this has caused widespread bewilderment.

Alexander Rozbaum reminded that the access restriction is connected with the work that has begun here to preserve the historical monument – ​​the Church of St. Elijah the Prophet. The restoration will be carried out by order of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, the work will be carried out by the Moscow company Ravelin.

"Recently, contractors have begun the active phase of the church's restoration. Currently, external work is underway, lifting mechanisms are in use, materials are being brought in. While the territory has turned into a construction site, there will be no access to the lilac garden. Builders are currently making a fence there, forming a side passage. When all this is completed, we will definitely tell you that you can come again and admire the beautiful and fragrant place of our city," the mayor said.

The next question on the topic of the urban environment again concerned greenery. However, it has nothing to do with higher forms of vegetation:

"Why is the water in the fountain in the Printing Square always green? They don't clean it, despite the fact that it's in the city center?"

Let us recall that the fountain on the territory of this recently renamed public space has been completely renovated . Nevertheless, the periodically changing color of the water does indeed alarm many.

"Novgorod residents send me photos of this water in private messages," the mayor shared. " Our fountains are professionally monitored by a team of employees from our enterprise Novgorod Vodokanal. We promptly investigated why the water had acquired its color. The color is also caused by leaves and pollen falling into the water. We carefully monitor that nothing gets clogged, so that the water in our fountains is aesthetically pleasing. Another scheduled cleaning was recently carried out, we will monitor when the summer weather becomes stable, so that this does not happen again."

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