Urban Ecology at a Crossroads

by Peter Sigrist



As closing post in the series on public parks in Moscow, this brings the discussion into the present day. With the recent change of mayors amidst a controversial plan for new development, this is a critical time in Moscow's history. I will discuss these events, as well as inspiring work taking place outside the halls of power.



Moscow's Genplan 2025 was initiated under the administration of recently deposed mayor Yuri Luzhkov (above). If fully implemented, it would radically change the fabric of the city, repurposing industrial sites, upgrading housing stock, and increasing roadways. The Transitional Landscapes post includes a more detailed assessment of this plan. The reason for Lyzhkov's removal was "loss of confidence" based on longstanding problems with corruption (some in connection with his wife, a billionaire construction magnate), housing, pensions, health care, and traffic congestion. Although Luzhkov tried to address these problems, he became known more for skyscrapers and horrific sculptures by Zurab Tsereteli.



On October 15th, President Medvedev nominated Putin's chief of staff, Sergei Sobyanin (above), as Luzhkov's successor. Sobyanin was confirmed by the City Duma six days later, pledging to root out corruption and improve living conditions in the capital. Although he has expressed support for preserving architectural heritage and green space, his idea for a "green corridor" involves a series of traffic lights timed to reduce congestion. However, last week he announced an initiative to improve public parks. So it is still unclear whether his leadership signals a promising new direction in Moscow's development. Despite this uncertainty, impressive projects continue to unfold throughout the city.

Landscape painting with power lines (left), which hangs near the geography department at Moscow State University. Landscape in Cultural Geography (right), by Vladimir Kalutskov.

Vladimir Nikolaevich Kolutskov is a cultural geographer at Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU). He is also affiliated with the Russian Research Institute of Cultural and Natural Heritage and the Russian Geographical Society. His research is based on the concept of landscape as a dynamic relationship between environments and inhabitants. The formal introduction of this idea among Russian geographers has been traced to Lev Semenovich Berg, whose perspective on regions, human influence, and change over time drew upon the work of German geographers Alfred Hettner and Otto Schlüter. Carl Sauer, of the Berkeley School, also drew upon these ideas in studying cultural geography and landscape morphology. Continuing in this tradition, Kalutskov hosts a seminar on cultural landscape every year at MSU, bringing together a diverse mix of people from around the world. These lines of thinking are well suited for the study of cities, based on a careful consideration of the built environment and the role of humans in ecological change.



Researchers and practitioners at the MSU Botanical Garden work to promote healthy green space in Moscow. Emilia Pavlovna Nemchenko has written several books on ornamental plants in cities, and can be found almost every day in the garden with gloves and a shovel. She and her coworkers give tours for the public throughout the year. MSU also manages the popular Apothecaries' Garden (above, or a satellite view) near the city center. Surrounded by busy streets, it contains ponds, greenhouses, meandering paths, and an amazing range of labeled plants, all within a short walk of the Prospect Mira metro station.



At the Timiryazev State Museum of Biology, Sergey Feliksovich Hribar, Anton Pavlovich Ivanov, and Maria Vitalyevna Egorova are developing valuable research on urban ecosystems. They view city landscapes as important parts of the natural world, to be studied and optimized for public health. As part of this work, they've mobilized decentralized groups of citizens to build taxonomies of urban flora and fauna. Participants use GIS and the Internet to add data, plot-by-plot, to a gridded map of the city. The museum also offers excursions through a variety of urban ecosystems, as well as educational programs for kids. Anton showed me a fascinating map (above) by Yuri Nasimovich of the rivers hidden beneath Moscow. There is more information on these rivers here, here, and here.



A new Ecocenter at the Sparrow Hills Nature Reserve (above) is designed to showcase practical information on ecological stewardship with an urban focus. It has outstanding interactive exhibits, including 3-D movies, multimedia games, puzzles, story archives, and historical photos. It is ready to open pending government approval. Ivan Levkovich-Maslyuk set up a wonderful tour of the center and reserve when I visited in October. He and his colleagues have been inviting groups of local children to test the exhibits. At the reserve, which follows the curve of the Moscow River, they have set up park benches, recycling units, flora/fauna identification displays, book kiosks, and an experimental wind-power generator (below).





Preservation of Moscow's built environment has gained momentum in response to years of insensitive development under Luzhkov. There was a remarkable event on October 22nd, titled "Moscow: Economics of Reincarnation" (the acronym M:ER is the Russian word for mayor, reflecting a focus on new opportunities present in the change of leadership). It took place at the new Skolkovo School of Management, in a striking building (above) by David Adjaye. The nonprofit preservation group Arkhnadzor organized the event, with support from the Strelka Institute, Moscow That Is No More, the Moscow Architectural Preservation Society (MAPS), the Shchusev State Museum of Architecture, the Architecture of Russia information portal, and the Moscow Architectural Institute. It was a vibrant gathering of concerned citizens, with presentations by economists, philosophers, historians, entrepreneurs, journalists, and designers (including Rem Koolhaas via live video). Although I had to leave before the presentations began, I was impressed by the wellspring of support for preservation and responsible urban development. This will hopefully take precedence over short-term financial interests in guiding Sobyanin's decisions. At the same time, the event was clearly designed to make a business case for preservation. I'm not sure whether this is a sign of intelligent pragmatism or direct influence by powerful billionaires like Roman Abramovich. He apparently provided funding and land (next to "Oligarch Alley") for the business school, and his girlfriend spearheaded the successful conversion of Konstantin Melnikov's Bakhmetyevsky Garage into an art gallery. I know that preservation, research, botanical gardens, and museums are usually tied to wealthy patrons, but are there legitimate ways to unravel these ties and remain viable?


The 'Usachyovka' workers' settlement at 18 Yefremova Street, designed by M. Motylyov, A. Meshkov, and N. Shcherbakov, 1928-1934. According to Clementine Cecil, in Moscow Heritage at Crisis Point (p. 73), developers have labeled these buildings unfit for living (despite objections from residents) in hopes of using the land more profitably. Low-rise apartments with central courtyards are at risk throughout the city.

"Ten Prominent Mayors" exhibit at M:ER, sponsored by the Village. From left, Oh Se-hoon of Soul, Jaime Lerner of Curitiba, and Michael Bloomberg of New York.

In light of this series and recent visits to Russia, I've decided to adapt the focus of my research from parks to public green space. This can be grouped into greenbelts, parks of culture and rest, botanical gardens, promenades, and courtyards between apartment buildings. I will concentrate on the period of political and economic change between 1985 and 2005. Moscow is both an exemplar and a highly unique case of urban development in Russia, and it is probably best understood in relation to other cities. Ideally, I hope to compare the establishment, maintenance, and use of public green space in Moscow with the same metrics in Vladimir, Novosibirsk, and Vladivostok. The goal is to assess the long-term ecological effects of public versus private land management. As this series comes to an end, I encourage anyone to add things that I've missed. Thank you for giving me a reason to post information and images around this theme.

Credits: Photos by Peter Sigrist, unless linked to an outside source. The opening photo is a view of Moscow's International Business Center through the trees of Sparrow Hills.

Transitional Landscapes

by Peter Sigrist


Walking along the Arbat in Moscow, from Study in Hard Photography by Sergei Leontiev, 1990-1991 (source).

Sixth in a series on public parks in Moscow, this post focuses on the period of economic and political transition between 1985 and 2005. It is a brief visual overview, bringing together a variety of processes that shape urban landscapes.


Title unknown, painted by Sergej Basilev, 1983 (source).


Mikhail and Raisa Gorbachev (source).

After coming to power in 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev initiated a period of restructuring (perestroika) in hopes of promoting incentive and growth through decentralization. This was accompanied by a new openness (glasnost) in governance, media, and the arts. Public criticism of the state was suddenly allowed, and artists who had been working underground became a kind of vanguard in this era of tentative freedom. Unlike the Constructivists, they didn't show much faith in Utopia. They tended toward harsh realities and iconoclastic parody of Soviet rule.


Shchi (Cabbage Soup) by Sergey Bugaev, aka Afrika, 1991 (source).


Lenin Mausoleum Project by Vitaly Komar and Alex Melamid, 1993 (source).

With few creative outlets during the mass housing drives of the Khrushchev-Brezhnev years, Russian architects developed a unique "paper architecture" that blossomed in the 1980s. Their whimsical, erudite, often ironic drawings and narratives proved remarkably successful in international design competitions. This allowed them a degree of independence from state-sponsored commissions.


Villa Nautilus: Bulwark of Resistance by Alexander Brodsky and Ilya Utkin, circa 1987 (source).

As the government released some control over building design and development during perestroika, new opportunities emerged for architects. Gorbachev encouraged people to move out of large cities, and increasing automobile ownership fueled speculative development in Moscow's green belts (French, 1995: 200, 104). Within the city, new plans emerged for Kitai Gorod, Lenin Library, Moscow State University, and the Arbat. After thirty years of stark modernist buildings, there was a renewed interest in detail and historical style. Many of the designs reflect the influence of paper architecture.


Restoration and development of the historic Kitai Gorod neighborhood in central Moscow, 1987-1990 (source).




Plans for an addition to the Lenin Library, 1987-1990 (source).




Competition entry for a new complex at Moscow State University, 1988-1989 (source). In comparison with the overall plan (below), here is what the area looks like today (the view is rotated almost 180 degrees clockwise).






Plans to close the Old Arbat to traffic, 1985 (source).




This was a popular meeting place in the Old Arbat for artists during perestoika. It is now called Tsoi Wall (source).


Viktor Tsoi's performance at the end of the 1987 film Assa (source). Another clip from the film shows the use of semi-abandoned space for unsanctioned activities.


Tearing down this wall, 1989 (source).

Perestroika and glasnost shook the already tenuous foundations of Soviet rule. As the Berlin Wall fell and Eastern European states began to assert their independence, conservative party members saw a need to regain control. They attempted a coup while Gorbachev was vacationing in August of 1991. Boris Yeltsin (former Moscow party secretary and recently elected president of the Russian Republic) remained at the parliament building, and popular support on the premises helped prevent the coup leaders from taking decisive action. Following the coup, Yeltsin pushed for more political and economic restructuring. Gorbachev resigned as head of the Communist Party, and the Soviet Union came to an end on New Year's Eve.


Boris Yeltsin in front of the parliament building in 1991 (source).

Yeltsin adopted intense market reforms, which exacerbated the post-Soviet economic crisis. People gained property rights to their homes, but many state assets were turned over to corrupt oligarchs. Yeltsin appointed Yury Luzhkov as mayor of Moscow in 1992, marking a new era of aggressive business promotion and urban renewal. The Russian parliament attempted to check Yeltsin's power by encouraging a violent takeover in October of 1993. After some equivocation, the military sided with Yeltsin, firing on the parliament building with tanks and reestablishing control.


Parliament building after the constitutional crisis of 1993 (source).

Yeltsin's administration became increasingly associated with corrupt, uneven, and short-sighted business practices amidst the economic crisis. Many people grew their own produce on Soviet-era cooperative garden plots to supplement their diets (French, 1995: 90). Public green space came under increasing threat of development. Between 1991 and 2001, nearly 22% of the green belt within 30 km of Moscow was used for new construction — most often in the form of private housing in gated communities (Blinnikov et al, 2006). As Yeltsin's health declined, he chose former KGB officer Vladimir Putin as his successor.


Yeltsin and Putin greet the public on New Year's Eve, 1999 (source).

Putin took over on the last day of 1999, and was elected president the following May. He is credited with reestablishing economic stability and reining in the oligarchs of the Yeltsin period, while developing a reputation for brutal authoritarian rule.


Genplan 2025 map of highway construction (source).

Under Mayor Luzhkov, a new master plan for Moscow was ratified in 1999 and updated in 2005. Deemed Genplan 2025, it was designed to organize the city's growth for the next twenty years. It is ostensibly less prescriptive than the plans of 1935 and 1971, focusing on the support and regulation of private initiatives. However, plans to update decayed housing stock appear highly proactive. According to a public site dedicated to monitoring the plan, 1 in 5 Moscow residents will be displaced from their homes and a 4th highway ring will surround the city. These plans face opposition from historic preservationists and residents of neighborhoods slated for redevelopment.


Protests against Genplan 2025. From left to right (rough translation of the signs that are fully or mostly legible): "Genplan 2025 — Death Sentence in Moscow!", "For the Preservation of the City's Historical Character", "Let's Preserve Moscow for Our Children", "[Illegible] and Not for the Construction Mafia", "Don't Allow Moscow to be Covered with Asphalt". Perhaps strangely, this picture is from the website of Right Cause, a center-right political party reputedly in favor of business, democracy, and human rights, with close ties to the Kremlin (source).

While Genplan 2025 is posted online, the format doesn't allow for machine translation, so it will take me some time to go through the entire document. The plan focuses on rebuilding within the city instead of on greenfield sites in the suburbs. This is to occur primarily in Moscow’s industrial “middle zone,” eliminating 16 of the 66 industrial sites currently inside the city, and reducing the area of an additional 20 (Journal of Real Estate and Investments). Reclaimed land is slated for housing, business, and parks. Like previous plans, Genplan 2025 calls for an integrated system of green space linked to forests around the perimeter, increasing urban parkland from 30.3 to 35.1 thousand hectares (ibid).


A meadow in Moscow's Krylatsky Hills. Photo by A. Klochkova (source).

Much of Genplan 2025 is reminiscent of previous plans, with obvious ideological differences. While the 1971 Genplan was explicitly dedicated to building a model communist city, the new plan focuses on guiding Moscow's transition to a market economy. The private sector has a relatively high degree of autonomy, and public-private partnerships appear to be the favored development model. Based on past experience with privatization and corruption, it is uncertain whether plans to reuse former industrial sites will be realized, or whether current green space will be protected.


A drive through the nearly abandoned ZIL automobile factory in Moscow (source).

Despite the expansion of suburbs into the green belt, there is reason to believe that most public parkland will survive the transition to a market economy. In 1986, "Gardener's Day" became a public holiday, and green space seems to be closely tied to national identity. This is particularly evident in Moscow, where the old Apothecaries' Garden near the heart of the city is being restored with sensitivity to cultural heritage (Hayden, 2006), the biology museum offers urban ecological tours, and the government boasts of a national park inhabited by elk within the city limits. Thus it is not likely that the state or city would cede valued parks to private development. However, the threat of gradual encroachment is ever present.


Buildings overlooking the Apothecaries' Garden (source: one of my own photos, I wish the quality was better, please feel free to use it if you'd like).


Greenhouse at the State Museum of Biology, which offers tours of "the forests, meadows, and marshes of Moscow" (source: also one of my photos, no restrictions).


Elk Island National Park, nearly a third of which is within Moscow's borders. Photo by V. Zabugina (source).

Reviewing Moscow’s public park system today, the longstanding influence of Garden City ideas is clear (especially shared courtyards, links to railways, buffer zones, and green belts). It also reflects the consequences of virtually limitless state control over the urban landscape. Some I find positive (kvartal * housing, efficient public transportation, accessible green space) and others not at all (giant roads, overbearing buildings, industrial pollution, loss of cultural heritage). With hope, Genplan 2025 will provide equal rights for all citizens to participate in decisions that lead to healthy and attractive living conditions.


Balkan Baroque by Andrei Filippov, 2005 (source). Although this title refers to the former Yugoslavia, Filippov was an important part of the Russian conceptual art movement in the 1980s-1990s, and the double-headed eagle is the Russian coat of arms.

While this brings my historical exploration just about to the present, I'm planning one more post to reflect on the series in light of current events. After that I'll begin fieldwork in Moscow. This will involve archival research, analysis of demographic data, interpretation of geographic images, interviews, and direct site assessment. I hope it will result in a comprehensive, historically informed study that integrates political, economic, social, cultural, and ecological processes. My overall goal is to contribute to policy decisions that improve the quality of life in cities.

* The Stalinist Urbanism post includes a brief description of kvartal housing. I imagine it looking something like this.

Boundaries of Power

by Peter Sigrist



Fifth in a series on public parks in Moscow, this post is a brief visual overview of the period between the end of Stalin's rule in 1953 and the ascension of Gorbachev in 1985. It focuses on urban development under Khrushchev and Brezhnev, with emphasis on public green space. It is dedicated to those who lost their lives in the Moscow Metro bombings on March 29th.


Castro photographing Khrushchev and his family during a visit to their dacha in 1963.

After Stalin's death, Khrushchev emerged as successor from among the dictator's closest lieutenants. He denounced Stalin at the Twentieth Party Congress in 1956, setting off an era of reform known as the thaw. Khrushchev introduced a number of bold initiatives to bring an end to shortages of food and housing which had reached crisis proportions during the Stalin years.


Five-story apartments built to address the housing crisis in the late 1950s.

As former Moscow city deputy in charge of completing the metro and other municipal projects during the 1930s, Khrushchev had a great deal of experience with urban development. He immediately put an end to the vainglorious architecture of the Stalin era, moving towards simple buildings made of prefabricated parts and often low-quality materials.


Housing construction with prefabricated concrete panels, 1958.

New residential construction became known as khrushchoby (a play on trushchoby, the Russian word for slums). Given the need to house millions of people as quickly as possible, Khrushchev called for functional modern architecture without the experimental quality of constructivist design. Still, most of Stalin's architects kept their jobs, and broader public criticism of urban development under the previous regime was suppressed.

The boundaries of Moscow were expanded in 1961 to provide space for more housing and a new highway ring. Small towns, agricultural land, former estates, and forests were transformed into apartments and public parks.



Housing was arranged in microdistricts made up of large apartment blocks with (at least in theory) public transportation links, walkable urban amenities, and public green space. Often transportation infrastructure proved slow in coming, amenities inconveniently dispersed, and green space poorly maintained or overwhelmingly vast.


Life on the ground in a microdistrict.


Apartment complexes in the southwestern district of Moscow.

However, the Khrushchev administration made significant gains in housing and the development of landscapes envisioned in the 1935 Moscow Master Plan. Parks and athletic facilities were built throughout the city, including a massive heated swimming pool on the site of the unrealized Palace of the Soviets.


The Moscow Pool, built on the site of Stalin's abandoned Palace of the Soviets (current site of the rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Savior).

New emphasis on improved living conditions, along with expanded freedoms and the indictment of Stalin, helped the Communist Party deflect some association with abuses from the past. Heavy industry, science, and technology remained paramount, giving rise to Yury Gagarin's pioneering space flight in 1961.


Posters celebrating space exploration and scientific advancement, by L. Tarasova.

Khrushchev's ambitions included the attainment of full communism by 1980, but his administration became associated with erratic policy, blunders on the world stage, corruption, and internal power struggles. He was "retired" by party elites in 1964 and replaced by the more conservative Brezhnev.


Brezhnev at the International Children's Festival, 1979.


Ice fishing near home in Moscow, circa 1979.


Opening sequence to the classic Russian film "Irony of Fate (or Enjoy Your Bath)," which parodies mass housing of the Brezhnev era.


Newly constructed buildings on Khalturin Street, 1971.


A 25-storey prefabricated building in Moscow.

Brezhnev continued the housing drive with taller and taller apartment blocks arranged in microdistricts. The 1971 Moscow Master Plan recommended clearer zoning, regional transportation links, preservation of cultural heritage, replacement of decayed building stock, and standards for public green space. Greenery was to weave through the city in continuous pathways, as explained in a planning document from 1967: "Parks, gardens, and public areas should form a single, unified system which interconnects internally as well as with the green belt in the suburban zones." *


Integration of green space connected to forest belts surrounding the city. Key: 1) public parks and gardens, 2) forests, 3) nursery gardens, sanitary protection zones, and cemeteries, 4) farmland.


Projected development of the Moscow region, envisioning a system of linked towns within forests, open fields, and farmland. Key: 1) Moscow city center, 2) other developed areas within the city limits, 3) satellite settlements, 4) green space, 5) electric railways, 6) highways.

Athletic facilities were still a top priority, with heightened intensity after Moscow was selected to host the 1980 Summer Olympics. This also sparked a beautification campaign, including the expansion of public green space. Although the U.S. and over 60 other nations boycotted the games in response to the invasion of Afghanistan, the excitement at home helped divert attention for a time from dissatisfaction with Soviet rule.


Model of the Olympic Complex at Prospect Mir.


Luzhniki Olympic Complex (formerly Lenin Central Stadium).


Landscaping along Komsomolsky Prospect (left). Tree-lined paths in Neskuchny Garden (right).

Despite considerable progress, housing and consumer goods were still in short supply by the early 1980s. Economic stagnation, corruption, and heavy-handed rule also fueled discontent. Brezhnev died in 1982. Yury Andropov, head of the KGB, took over and served until his death in 1984. Andropov was replaced by Konstantin Chernenko, who died a year later. This paved the way for Gorbachev, representing a new generation.


"Bravo!" A poster of Gorbachev by C. Faldina and A. Faldin.

The Khrushchev and Brezhnev years brought substantial improvements in housing for the public at large. Moscow also benefited from the establishment of green space linked by public transportation. But increasing dissatisfaction with the centrally planned state proved insurmountable. Even the government's best efforts to meet people's needs were unsuccessful, perhaps because of the scarcity of legal means for people to meet their own needs. At the same time, centralized authority allowed for the development and maintenance of remarkable urban parks.



Russia's experience raises a number of questions. How can we realize great public works without suppressing citizen rights or suffering economic stagnation? Is there an alternative to economic growth that allows each person to meet their needs while at the same time working towards collective wellbeing? Can development objectives ever focus more on cooperation in solving global problems than on capital and consumption? If so, what might be the first step?


"We will grow our own club." A poster by M. Belov and A. Savin showing neighbors landscaping the interior park of their residential complex.

* Guidelines and Standards Regarding the Planning, Layout, and Facilities of Settled Areas in the Soviet Union, published by the State Committee of the Council of Ministers of the U.S.S.R. on Construction (1967) and translated by Katheryn A. Rumsey and Kathleen M. Quant (1974).

Credits: Photo of people sitting by a fountain near the Bolshoi Theater scanned from Moscow Past and Present by V. Promyslov. Photo of Castro photographing Khrushchev by Alberto Korda. Photo of five-storey apartment buildings from mosday.ru. Photo of construction with prefabricated panels from mgsupgs.livejournal.com. Plan of Moscow's expansion scanned from Moscow: Capital of the Soviet Union by G. Lappo et al. Photo of apartment complexes in the southwestern district of Moscow scanned from Moscow: Capital of the Soviet Union. Photo of life on the ground in a microdistrict scanned from Moscow Past and Present. Photo of the Moscow Pool from rcforum.ru. Posters celebrating space exploration, science, and technology scanned from Символы Эпохи в Советском Плакате by the Государственный Исторический Музей. Photo of Brezhnev at the International Children's Festival from soviethistory.org. Photo of people ice fishing in Moscow scanned from Moscow Past and Present. Video of "Irony of Fate" opening sequence from YouTube user kushik333. Photo of apartment blocks on Khalturin street scanned from Soviet Architecture of Today: 1960s to Early 1970s by A. Ikonnikov. Photo of the 25-storey prefabricated building scanned from Moscow Past and Present. Green space and regional development maps of the 1971 General Plan for the Development of Moscow scanned from Moscow: Capital of the Soviet Union. Photo of the model for the Olympic Complex at Prospect Mir scanned from Moscow Past and Present. Photo of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex scanned from Moscow Past and Present. Photos of Komsomolsky Prospect and Neskuchny Garden scanned from Moscow: Capital of the Soviet Union. Poster of Gorbachev scanned from Символы Эпохи в Советском Плакате. Photo of a Moscow park in fall scanned from Moscow: Capital of the Soviet Union. Poster of neighbors landscaping their park scanned from Mosca: Captale dell' utopia by Arnoldo Mondadori Arte.