Magnitogorsk’s Attraction project wins 2023 City Heroes award

The Attraction park in Magnitogorsk was named one of the winners of a 2023 City Heroes business award at a ceremony held during the 12th Moscow Urban Forum. Victor Rashnikov, Chairman of MMK's Board of Directors, initiated the project and is its main investor.

The Attraction project was named the winner in the "Culture and Recreation: Leisure" category. The awards are sponsored by the state corporation VEB.RF and the Moscow Urban Forum, with support from the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, the Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises national project, VK, the SME Corporation, the Razvivai.rf marketplace, the SKOLKOVO Moscow School of Management and the My Business centres. The winners of the competition included 17 business projects that had the greatest impact on improving the quality of the urban environment in Russia's regions.

Work on the Attraction project in Magnitogorsk has been ongoing since 2019, on the personal initiative of Viktor Rashnikov. The first phase of the project, which opened in 2022, included an area of 27 hectares of park grounds along with a pedestrian boulevard, a skate park, a fountain with lights and music, an information centre and a food court. The park grounds include pedestrian, jogging and bicycle paths as well as a variety of green spaces, including a themed flower garden.

The project's second phase, which opened in 2023, includes an artificial hill 36 metres in height with an observation deck at the top, as well as a lake with a surface area of 12 hectares, above which stands a 400-metre-long bridge offering excellent views. An additional 40 kilometres of bicycle and pedestrian paths were added to the park's existing network. In addition to playgrounds built earlier, a waterpark for children was added that is outfitted with water sprayers.

"This is a very large-scale project: a genuine urban resort that we are committed to making even more exciting and more inviting for Magnitogorsk residents of all ages and interests, so that it becomes a real point of attraction for residents and visitors to the city," said Mr Rashnikov.

The Attraction project, which is expected to be completed in 2025, involves the integrated development of grounds covering an area of about 400 hectares.

About the awards:

The City Heroes awards highlight the best projects that improve quality of life for people in Russian cities. In total, 500 applications from 161 cities were submitted for this year's competition. The selection committee chose 87 projects from 61 cities for the shortlist. Russian citizens then determined the winners through open voting on the official awards website.