Students presented over 50 park and garden improvement projects.

The territories needing improvement had been identified by Kazan district governments in conjunction with city’s Department of Architecture. Afterwards, design proposals had been forwarded to Kazan Architecture and Construction Academy. Undergraduates have, as of this moment, developed 54 beautification concepts for 25 urban areas.

One of the largest is the Nizhny Kaban lake waterfront beautification concept.

“Our main idea is to build an arboretum in the centre of the city, where both decorative plants and birds would be featured. This should allow attract tourists. The project envisages pedestrian and bicycle lanes, as well as a pedestrian bridge, museum of Kaban Lake’s history, water theatre and docking terminals for river buses,” academy’s 4-year student Kamila Minnullina shared.

Ilsur Metshin seemed impressed by the scale of work, noting students’ projects had drastically improved.

Another project he praised was a garden at the intersection of Bolotnikov and Frunze streets.

“This area is an entrance to the city from Moscow. Garden planning needs to be commenced, so that visitors coming into town know they are in the capital of Tatarstan rich in national traditions,” the city chief said.

Provided the students’ projects are implemented, each district of Kazan will get a new or a reconstructed park.

“The urban beautification effort will be continued into the year after the Year of Parks and Gardens. Today we make a large step forward. We want to build the best, to do which we need best architects and companies with solid experience, including in our city. If we only work with guest architects, we will never learn anything. A golden middle is called for here,” the mayor stressed.