New Town in Russia

An artist's view of the proposed new town of Yuznyi, Russia.

The economic prosperity in Russia has brought great pressure on Moscow and St. Petersburg as the urban population is rapidly growing with workers coming from rural areas for business opportunities.  New towns are being planned near the urban centers, and one utilizing the successful European formats established before the era of Stalin, is Yuznyi.  All the buildings will be evocative of the traditional styles.

A map showing the two parts of the new town of Yuznyi in purple.

Avoiding the architectural mistakes of the Communists who built isolated residential towers disconnected from the streets and separated from the urban core, the new town of Yuznyi will be a satellited of St. Petersburg, located on a regional railroad line and adjacent to the M-20 highway.  Convenient access to central St. Petersburg and Gatchina employement centers as well as the Pulkoro International Airport is a notable feature as the construction within the cities cannot keep up with the demand.

Yuznyi will be composed of districts with each being distinctive and having unique features.  From single-family houses in tree-lined neighborhoods to four-to-seven story apartment buildings in mixed-use town centers, there will be a range in housing choices, all within walking distance of shops, schools and parks.  There will be a university campus, office and light industrial areas, and a hospital with the districts linked by a network of public transit, walking trails and waterways.

A detailed plan of the first phase of construction for Yuznyi, expected to be complete in 2013.

Having services located within walking distance and/or public transportation will reduce the automobile dependency that has grown to nightmare proportions in the cities.  Two of the largest neighborhoods will be located at existing commuter rail stations that service St. Petersburg.  The apartment buildings in these transit centers will have ground floor shops and services with the buildings constructed around courtyards and facing pocket parks.

A conceptual view of a mixed use neighborhood near a transit center.

The density of housing types decreases further away from the transportation center.  Neighborhoods of rowhouses/townhouses are planned for the second phase of construction and the designs are still being developed.  With the goal of attractive tree-lined streets with front yards and a variety of facades, the market surveys have shown, however, considerable opposition to alleys and parking in the rear of the lots;  Russians prefer a big backyard with parking in the front.  The struggle to design attractive yet affordable housing continues, however.

A conceptual view of the neighborhood of attached houses in Yuznyi.

The next posting of The Devoted Classicist will present the interesting history of the area and an example of a new American-influenced single-family detached house.  All the images are the work of the Pittsburgh firm Urban Design Associates which has developed the Concept Plan for the new town of Yuznyi.