The Library Garage, a modular pavilion in the library courtyard, was opened in Chortkiv on 4 September. The space aims to bring together different groups of residents, providing a friendly environment for communication, events and the generation of ideas for community development.

The Chortkiv Hromada is one of the 10 hromadas that won a competition held by the Ukraine-Moldova American Enterprise Fund and Cedos. As part of the competition, each community received a grant of 1,000,000 UAH to create a community building center, along with mentoring support from experts in architecture, culture, communications, and social interaction.

About the Center

The demand for a barrier-free space was revealed during an open design session, as the three-story library building is not physically accessible and cannot be significantly altered due to its status as an architectural monument. The development of the project was based on the wishes of the community, collected during separate meetings with the audience.

The war was a turning point for Ukrainian society, uniting people against the enemy. It is important to preserve this cohesion by developing and supporting inspiring projects. The Library Garage is a shining example of community building, demonstrating the power of community initiatives to unite people. Spaces like this are part of UMAEF strategy to develop local communities through innovative platforms for learning, collaboration and growth.

Iryna Ozymok, UMAEF Local Economic Development Director, Founder of the International Mayors Summit

The Library Garage will be a venue for literary events, lectures and training sessions, art and photo exhibitions, traditional crafts workshops, educational events, and sessions of the Silver Age University. Meetings of the Film Club on Zelena Street and the Book Start for Kids club, as well as musical jams, are just a few examples of regular gatherings organized by the space’s visitors.

The foundation of the Garage is its incredible people, who strive to build an even stronger community around the library and create a broader range of cultural opportunities in a small town. They aim to support each other during difficult times and help navigate the diverse experiences of the ongoing war.

Kateryna Yakovets, Architect, Co-creator of the Garage

The Library Garage is designed so that you can open the doors and use the courtyard as an extension of this space. According to the project’s architect Ivan Protasov in an interview for Mistosite, this courtyard had previously functioned as a public place, so this was taken into account.

This is what we have been working towards for over a year: building new meanings on the old foundations. Each and every one of us has brought to the community his or her own particularity, his or her own difference, which benefits the common cause and makes the result even better. After working hard for a long time on the physical space, we realised that our Garage is first and foremost people. People who have come together for a common goal and are working together. So let’s keep on garaging!

Iryna Brunda, Director of the Chortkiv Public Library

The project is being implemented by the NGO Bukovinian Agency for Regional Development in partnership with the Chortkiv Public Library and the Chortkiv City Council.

Read also about the opening of a community building center in Blyzniuky in the Kharkiv Region, about the inclusive coworking space which opened in the Kovel Hromada in Volyn, and the Nezlamni veteran space which opened in Nizhyn.