In Odessa, the price of drinking fountains has increased fivefold: they now cost 23 million each

Odesa plans to allocate 154.2 million hryvnias for the construction of eight drinking water facilities. According to city documents, the cost of one such facility has risen from 4.5 million hryvnias to 23 million hryvnias.

According to an analysisby the Center for Public Investigations, this information is contained in Odessa’s updated environmental program for 2022–2029, which was approved by Order No. 387-2026 issued by Serhiy Lysak, head of the Odessa City Military Administration No. 387-2026. 

The total budget for the program is approximately 451.3 million hryvnias. A total of 154.2 million hryvnias has been allocated for eight drinking water facilities—this accounts for about one-third of the program’s total funding.

At the same time, four drinking water facilities planned for different parts of the city were each assigned the same cost —23 million hryvnias. The updated environmental program does not explain this price discrepancy.

The document lists the following facilities, their estimated costs, and implementation timelines:

• “Entuziastiv” Park—4.5 million hryvnias, 2022–2023.
• “Zoryany” Square — 17.5 million hryvnias, 2024–2025.
• Park near Building No. 29 on Vladislav Buvalkin Street — 19.4 million hryvnias, 2025–2027.
• Peresypsky District, Akademika Sakharova Street — 20.8 million hryvnias, 2023–2026.
• Park on Central Airport Street—23 million hryvnias, 2027–2028.
• Hloadan Family Street, near buildings No. 27–35 — 23 million hryvnias, 2026–2027.
• The area between building No. 11 on 28th Brigade Street and 155 Prince Volodymyr the Great Avenue — 23 million hryvnias, 2027–2028.
• The park at the intersection of Rachkova Street, Vitaliy Nesterenko Street, and 1st Polovyi Lane—23 million hryvnias, 2027–2028.

Thus, the cost of the drinking fountain in “Entuziastiv” Park was initially estimated at 4.5 million hryvnias, whereas the new projects are now projected to cost up to 23 million hryvnias. The difference is more than fivefold.

There is no specific explanation for this price increase in the environmental program. The document does not specify how a 23-million-hryvnia drinking fountain would differ from the facility for which 4.5 million hryvnias were previously planned.

In particular, the program does not provide data that would allow one to determine whether the difference is related to the depth of the wells, water purification equipment, site landscaping, or other characteristics of the future complexes.

It is also telling that the same cost—23 million hryvnias each—was listed for four drinking fountains planned for different locations. At the same time, the project documentation for some of the facilities is still to be developed in 2026–2027. 

A special case is the drinking fountain on Akademika Sakharova Street. According to the document, the city plans to reuse an existing design, but the estimated cost of the facility is still 20.8 million hryvnias.

Андрій Колісніченко