On October 9, members of the Syktyvkar non-governmental organization "Project 1780" (the year of the city’s founding) presented their first project "Ust-Sysolsk Game Tables". The correspondent of «7x7»" visited the opening ceremony in the Kirov park of Syktyvkar.
Within a month, activists improved the site near the literary museum at the intersection of Kirov and Ordzhonikidze streets: laid stone slabs, planted thujas, installed two game tables and benches. Quests about the history of Syktyvkar and Komi toponymy are printed on them, developed by the project participant Yulia Posevkina.
The mayor of the city Valery Kozlov came to the opening ceremony; he admitted that he did not expect the project to be so successful.
"When I first heard about this project, I wasn't expecting this. But what I see now is well above my expectations. I hope the townspeople will not break benches or tables," the mayor said.
Civil activists received a grant from the administration of Syktyvkar: 78 thousand rubles: they bought building materials, tables and benches. According to the project participant Yulia Posevkina, unknown people stole one bench at night.
Activists have not yet decided whether to leave the game tables for the winter in the park or pass them to the museum.
The non-governmental organization "Project 1780" was created in August 2018. It includes civil society activists, leaders of city public organizations, human rights activists. They will work in four directions. The first is the improvement of the city, small projects to create coziness and comfort. The second is the work with the budget of Syktyvkar, public activists are planning to tell citizens in plain language about how the budget is structured, to increase their responsibility for what is happening. The third is the involvement of citizens in the projects. The fourth direction is the policy of land management, infill construction and preservation of green areas.
For the first time the idea of creating an organization was put forward by civil activists Ilya Kostin and Yulia Posevkina at Syktyvkar barcamp.
Maxim Polyakov, photo by Alexander Galutsky, «7x7»
