The formation of Nizhny Novgorod's Development Strategy through 2036 has begun.

      The first meeting of experts from various fields was held at the Nizhny Novgorod "Mayak" Academy, where the head of Nizhny Novgorod, Yury Shalabaev, announced the start of the formation of the City Development Strategy through 2036.

      The meeting took the form of expert groups in areas such as "Housing and the Urban Environment," "Education and Youth Policy," "Sports and Health Preservation," "Social Policy," "Entrepreneurship, Investment and Digital Technologies," and "Culture and Tourism." Yury Shalabaev stated that the foundation for shaping the future Development Strategy of Nizhny Novgorod has been significantly strengthened in recent years.

      "Thanks to the participation of the government, thanks to the decisions made by Governor Gleb Nikitin, thanks to our joint work, significant infrastructural changes have taken place in Nizhny Novgorod, changes in the social sphere, changes in the attitude of Nizhny Novgorod residents toward their city. And it is precisely these changes that push us to the next step: to solving the tasks of designing a new city that will be competitive in the economy of the future, in which our children will want to live, in which we ourselves will want to live, create and work. I believe that in our work we must move from solving local problems to forming a holistic image of the city of Nizhny Novgorod for a fairly long-term perspective," said the head of the city.

      Yury Shalabaev specifically noted that the Strategy is being developed for the residents of Nizhny Novgorod, so what is needed is not an abstract document but a concrete action program that will provide for the sustainable development of innovative projects. In addition, the Nizhny Novgorod Development Strategy must correspond to the regional Development Strategy—the resource provision that the city receives from higher-level budgets.

      "We must implement solutions in order to be competitive in the modern world. But we must not lose our identity: all urban planning decisions must pass through a filter for compliance with our historical and cultural code. And another principle of strategy formation is openness. We must discuss every decision with the expert community and with residents," explained Yury Shalabaev.

      Chairman of the City Duma of Nizhny Novgorod Evgeny Chintsov noted that each expert has their own vision for the city's development and their own opinion, but final decisions will be made based on the views of Nizhny Novgorod residents.

      Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Investments of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Alevtina Yeryomina recalled that at the end of 2024 the Spatial Development Strategy of the Russian Federation was adopted, which defined the system for developing the territories of the entire country. She noted that this strategic session should be related to that Strategy, which identifies urban agglomerations as the main points of growth in Russia's development.

      "The Nizhny Novgorod agglomeration is one of the largest in the Russian Federation. Therefore, without a doubt, the ideas and proposals that will be expressed today will influence the development of the entire region as a whole. As for economic development, in the future the emphasis should be on high-performance manufacturing. And, in fact, such steps are already being taken now," she emphasized.

      Doctor of Sociological Sciences, professor, head of the Department of General Sociology and Social Work at N.I. Lobachevsky Nizhny Novgorod State University, Sergey Sudyin, drew the session participants' attention to what has already been created in the city. He proposed placing special emphasis in the Strategy on demographic policy and support for young families.

      "In 2024 in Nizhny Novgorod there were about 30 municipal payments, which were used by 50 thousand people. One and a half billion rubles were allocated for this. A 'single window' was created to assist families of participants in the special military operation (SVO). In addition, there are systems of grant support for civic initiatives: the 'Young Nizhny,' 'Open Nizhny,' and 'Sveti' contests. The city also has 11 types of payments that were increased last year. All this together indicates that we have a very mature social policy that is developing very dynamically," said the professor.

      Photo: TG channel of the head of Nizhny Novgorod

      Zolotov Roman Andreevich (chairman of the Youth Council of specialists of enterprises and organizations of Nizhny Novgorod)

      Photo: TG channel of the head of Nizhny Novgorod

      Photo: TG channel of the head of Nizhny Novgorod

      Sudyin Sergey Alexandrovich (head of the Department of General Sociology and Social Work, NNSU)

      Rector of the Nizhny Novgorod University of Architecture and Civil Engineering Dmitry Shchegolev noted that the active development of Nizhny Novgorod is noticeable not only to residents but is especially evident to those who have not visited the city for several years.

      "As part of the urban environment improvement program, more than two hundred public spaces have been transformed, and all residents in all districts can see this. And the challenges we face are quite serious. We will work in two directions. First is the creation of a comfortable environment and public spaces. And second is providing our townspeople with comfortable and well-equipped housing. The main key project in which the city works and is one of the leaders in the Russian Federation is comprehensive territorial development. And here the opinions of residents are very important in terms of requests and the sociological foundations of urban development," said the rector.

      In turn, Chairman of the Public Chamber of Nizhny Novgorod Sergey Gorin noted a very good trend in the development of culture in the city, particularly highlighting the state of libraries, where excellent conditions have been created for readers.

      "We also reopened the Dobrolyubov Museum after restoration. Now very delicate work is underway to restore the Gorky Museum on Minin Street. Much is being done in shaping the urban environment: monuments to Gorky and to participants of the First World War have been installed. I consider the priority work of the cultural sector in the near future to be work on consciousness. We must educate a comprehensively developed person, and this is enormous work, including libraries, museums and theaters," he said.

      Director of Olympic Reserve Sports School No. 1, chair of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Athletics Federation, Olympic champion Natalya Sadova thanked the city's mayor Yury Shalabaev for supporting the development of sports in schools and spoke about the established Center for School Sports Leagues and about the work underway to create a program for the reconstruction of sports school and stadium infrastructure.

      "More than 1,000 events are held in the city each year, ranging from large-scale runs, marathons and half-marathons to classes within the 'Sport in Every Yard' project. In addition, elite sports are now also well funded; funds are allocated for trips for the best athletes, for training camps in other regions, and for competitions," Natalya reported.

      Irina Boryakova, director of School No. 131 in the "Tsvety" microdistrict, spoke about the new schools and annexes built over the past five years. She noted Yury Shalabaev's comprehensive approach to the development of education, which consists not only of constructing new facilities but also of modernizing existing institutions.

      "Educational institutions are not just walls. Programs to support young teachers are in place: grant support and payments to young teachers, which have increased, and support for school development programs. I am confident that we will design such a good city of the future in which people will want to live, study, rest and develop culturally," said the director.

      At the end of the strategic session, experts from each area presented to the head of Nizhny Novgorod, Yury Shalabaev, the projects developed that day, which will form the basis of the City Development Strategy.

      It should be recalled that only the first meeting has taken place so far; a series of specialized meetings will continue.

      Kristina Koretskaya

      Photo: TG channel of the head of Nizhny Novgorod