Big City Lab will develop a concept for the restoration of the Lokomotive stadium

The team of Big City Lab urban bureau, together with PUPA architectural bureau, won an open competition held by Ukrainian Railways to develop a concept for the restoration of the Lokomotive sports complex, which was destroyed by a Russian missile in January 2024. 

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In July 2024, Ukrainian Railways launched an open tender and publicly invited design and architectural organisations to discuss the reconstruction of the destroyed complex. The tender task was not just to restore the destroyed building as it was before the enemy attack, but to develop the territory comprehensively and turn it into a multifunctional centre for the development of railway workers and youth. The reconstruction project will be implemented with the support of The Howard G. Buffett Foundation.

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Five companies submitted their concepts directly to the competition: Central Design Institute state enterprise of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine, balbek bureau, Rembud project centre, Sportproject LLC and the collaboration of the urban bureau Big City Lab + PUPA. The winner was selected based on three criteria: experience in performing similar work, price, and the idea and elaboration of the design concept. In this regard, the winner was the collaboration of the Big City Lab team and Lithuanian partners PUPA.

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Big City Lab will create a space open to railway workers and their families, professionals and sports enthusiasts, and all capital residents. The concept of the new Loko City will not be limited to the restoration of the football stadium. It will also take into account various popular sports such as basketball and volleyball, running and climbing, swimming and boxing.

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The concept proposal for Lokomotive was developed at the intersection of the office's key specialisations. The experience of creating a sports cluster at Expocenter of Ukraine and expertise in barrier-free and participatory approaches will be used to implement the new brand in Kyiv's sports infrastructure.

The principles of the concept of the new Loko City were developed for the competition:

• Taking into account the needs of both professional athletes and people who want to lead an active lifestyle
• Adaptation of the space for all groups with limited mobility in terms of physical, informational and digital accessibility, taking into account the needs of veterans and the military
• Multifunctional infrastructure and comfortable conditions for players and fans
• Revitalisation and reuse of existing buildings and preservation of the history of FC Lokomotive, the oldest professional club in Kyiv
• Creation of an easily recognisable city brand that will fit into the architectural ensemble of the district
• Implementation of energy-efficient engineering solutions and use of renewable energy sources

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