The city of Zaporizhzhia is a regional center of the Zaporizhzhia province, one of the largest administrative, industrial and cultural centers of the south of Ukraine. Zaporizhzhia as a regional center has an influence on 14 cities, 23 urban-type settlements, many villages. As of April 1, 2017, its population was 749 thousand people, which is the sixth mark in Ukraine.
Territory
Zaporizhzhia is located on banks of the Dnieper river, with the Khortytsia island splitting it into two streams. The city's area is 331 square kilometers, and it is the fifth largest city in Ukraine. Water resources occupy 13% of the territory, industrial and warehouse facilities take in 24%, 18% is used for agriculture, the rest of the territory is occupied by residential construction.
The city is divided into seven administrative districts: Oleksandrivskyi, Zavodskyi, Komunarskyi, Dniprovskyi, Voznesenivskyi, Khortytskyi, Shevchenkivskyi. The center of the city is the left-bank part of Dniprovskyi, Voznesenivskyi, and Aleksandrovskyi districts. Industrial enterprises are concentrated in the Zavodskyi district, but there are also residential areas. The rest of the districts are mostly bedroom ones.
The city comprises about 1300 avenues, streets, lanes, and squares. A visiting card of Zaporizhzhia is the main street of the city, Sobornyi Avenue, which stretches for 10.8 km through four districts of the city.
Sobornyi Avenue, photo: Sergiy Lavrov
Zaporizhzhia is adjacent to Vilnianski, Orihivskyi, Vasylivskyi, and Kamiansk-Dniprovskyi districts of the Zaporizhzhia province. As part of the province, the city shares borders with Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk and Kherson provinces; the southern border stretches along the Azov Sea coast.
Transport infrastructure
Zaporizhzhia is an important transport hub in the south of Ukraine. The city transport infrastructure includes external routes, an internal transport network, and a public passenger transport network.
Railway transport
Zaporizhzhia is an important railway junction which belongs to the Prydniprovska railway. The city has two railway stations: Zaporizhzhia-1 and Zaporizhzhia-2.
Automobile transportation
The left and right banks of the city are connected with the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station dam and bridges over Khortytsia. The territory of the city is crossed by important transport arteries: the roads of national importance - H08, H23, H15; the E105 European highway; the M14 road of international importance. The intercity bus transportation of passengers is carried out by three bus stations and one bus terminal.
Air connection
The international airport of Zaporizhzhia, located in the north-eastern part of the city, provides the air connection. In 2017, the construction of a new modern terminal is planned.
Water transport
Freight and passengers water service is maintained by the river station "Dubovyi Hai" and the river port located on the left bank of the Dnieper in the lower and the upper pools of the Dnieper Hydroelectric Station, respectively.
Climate
Zaporizhzhia lies in the zone of continental climate in the southern climatic region, which is characterized by aridity and abundance of sunny days. The city has warm and long summer − it can last from the beginning of May until the end of September. Winter is moderately soft and dry.
The average annual temperature is 9.0 ?, the average July temperature is 22.8 ?, in January it is −4.9 ?. The record high is 40.2 ?, the record low is −29.3 ?.
Industry
Zaporizhzhia is one of the largest industrial cities in the country. The machine-building, energy and metallurgical complexes of state importance are located here. The industrial potential of the city is provided with over 290 enterprises.
The metallurgical complex of the city is represented by enterprises of ferrous and nonferrous metallurgy:
The Zaporizhzhia steel plant "Zaporizhstal" PJSC − the leading manufacturer of rolled metal, steel and cast iron;
PJSC "Zaporizhzhia Ferroalloy Plant" − the leading producer of ferroalloys;
PJSC "Electrometallurgical Plant Dniprospetsstal" − a manufacturer of special steels;
LLC "Titanium Magnesium Combine" − the only producer of sponge titanium in Ukraine, which also produces titanium ingots.
Vitally important enterprises of the machine-building industry:
PJSC "ZAZ" – the only enterprise in Ukraine that has a full cycle of production of passenger cars, produces trucks and buses as well;
JSC "Motor Sich" – a manufacturer of engines for aviation engineering, industrial gas turbine units;
PJSC "Zaporizhtransformator" – one of the leaders in the world of transformers construction;
PJSC "Ukrainian Graphite" – the leading manufacturer of graphite electrodes for electric furnaces;
PJSC "Zaporizhzhia Heavy Crane Plant" – one of the largest crane-manufacturing enterprises of the country;
LP "Zaporizhzhia Plant of High-Voltage Equipment" – a supplier of high-voltage measuring transformers, complete switchgears of medium voltage and high-voltage disconnectors;
Public utility "Scientific and Production Complex Iskra"- a developer and manufacturer of ground radar equipment of the defense complex of Ukraine;
Zaporizhzhia State Aviation Repair Factory "MiGremont" (state enterprise) – specializes in the repair and modernization of aviation equipment;
PJSC "Zaporizhzhia Mechanical Plant" – produces spare parts for rolling stock of railway transport;
PJSC "Zaporizhzhia Electrical Hardware Plant" – specializes in the production of power semiconductor converters.
The production of food and beverages is represented by enterprises:
PJSC "Karlsberg Ukraine" – a European-level enterprise for the production of beer, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, which produces the most popular brands – Baltika, Tuborg, Carlsberg, Lviv, Arsenal, Zatecky Gus, Kvass Taras and others;
PJSC "Zaporizhzhia Oil and Fat Plant" – a modern enterprise with a full cycle of processing of raw materials that produces margarine and fat products;
PJSC "Zaporizhzhia Confectionery Factory" – a producer of traditional sweets;
Ukrainian-Spanish "Urozhai" LLC – the largest private bakery in the city;
Molis LLC – cheese and dairy products.
The bottling line at the Zaporizhzhia plant Karlsberg Ukraine, photo: https://carlsbergukraine.com/
Education
In Zaporizhzhia, specialists are trained in eight higher education institutions of the ?-? level of accreditation, the main of which are:
Zaporizhzhia State Engineering Academy
Zaporizhzhia State Medical University
Zaporizhzhia Institute of Economics and Information Technologies
Zaporizhzhia National Technical University
Zaporizhzhia National University
Classical Private University
Educational services are provided by 17 vocational schools, 121 general secondary schools of ?-? degrees. To study gifted children there are 9 lyceums, 3 collegiums, 17 gymnasiums, 6 specialized schools with an in-depth study of individual subjects. According to the EIT results in 2017, two Zaporizhzhia schools entered the TOP-100 schools of the country.
Aesthetic education Zaporizhzhia children get in 8 music schools, 4 art schools, and children's painting school. For the smallest inhabitants, there are 143 kindergartens.
Culture and Art
Zaporizhzhia lives a rich cultural life, there are six theaters in the city:
There are 37 public libraries in the city: 17 for children, 20 for adults. The largest of them is the Zaporizhzhia Regional Universal Scientific Library n. a. Maxim Gorky.
In Zaporizhzhia, there are more than ten palaces, a cinema concert hall n. a. O. Dovzhenko, Regional Philharmonic, at which the Academic Symphony Orchestra operates, four modern cinemas, a circus. Recently, the planetarium was renewed.
One can get acquainted with the history of the region at the Museum of Local Lore, the Museum of the Zaporizhzhia Cossacks History, Museum of Technology Boguslaev, the Antique Retro Car Museum Phaeton, The Museum of the History of Weapons and others.
Sport
Zaporizhzhia is a sports place that is proud of its champions. In the ranking of sports achievements, Zaporizhzhia did not fall below the seventh place among other regions. Zaporizhzhia athletes take part and win awards at European and world competitions, represent the country at the Olympic Games. The city prepares strong athletes, handball players, wrestlers of the Greco-Roman style.
During 25 years of Ukraine independence, Zaporizhzhia athletes hit the podium more than 130 times at European and world competitions, 27 times of which they won the highest prizes. Zaporizhzhia brought the country 4 silver and 16 bronze medals at the Olympic Games.
Tourism
The first tourist object associated with Zaporizhzhia is the Khortytsia National Reserve, one of the seven wonders of Ukraine. The largest river island in Europe stretches for 12 km along the banks of the Dnieper. Khortytsia not only has a unique landscape, fauna, and flora, it also preserves the history of our ancestors.
In the north of the island, there is the Historical and Cultural Complex "Zaporizhzhian Sich", the reconstruction of the Cossacks' Sich. Here regular excursions, master classes, and performances of Cossacks take place. Nearby the Museum of the History of the Cossacks with a viewing deck, which offers an impressive view of DniproHES, is situated.
The Historical and Cultural Complex "Zaporizhzhian Sich", photo: Sergiy Lavrov
The central part of Khortytsia is a true southern steppe with numerous cloughs. In this part of the island a historical and cultural complex "Scythian State" is situated. In the south, there are floodplains, formed by a combination of lakes and creeks. Here you can find wild boars, roe, deer.
Khortytsia is a favorite place of Zaporizhzhians to have a rest. There are recreation centers, sanatoriums, dispensaries, beaches, pleasant and cognitive water tours around the island are carried out.
The Dnieper Hydroelectric Station is the second tourist symbol of Zaporizhzhia and the second largest hydroelectric power station in Ukraine. At the time of its clearing for operation, it was the most powerful hydroelectric power station in Europe. DniproHES stretches for 1.3 km across the Dnieper River and connects the right and left banks. Although it is an industrial object, it impresses with its grandeur and beauty.
DniproHES view, photo: Sergiy Lavrov
Those who moved from the right bank of the Dnieper to the left through DniproHES immediately meet Sobornyi Avenue, a former Lenin Avenue. Here, the monumental buildings in the Stalinist Empire style are found side by side with the architectural monuments of Constructivism of the 1930-ies. And in the Oleksandrivskyi district, the old part of the city, the buildings of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were preserved, when Zaporizhzhia was just Aleksandrovsk.
There are many other interesting things in Zaporizhzhia: the Mennonite Germans' houses, the only children's botanical garden in Ukraine, the longest children's railway, wonderful parks, recreation on the Dnieper, museums, theaters and cinemas, entertainment centers, restaurants, and cafes.
Zaporizhzhia City Council
