At the Ukraine Recovery Conference URC 2026 in Gdańsk, Polish construction company Polimex Mostostal SA signed an agreement with the Roman Catholic Parish of Saint Nicholas in Kyiv. The document provides for free provision of construction scaffolding and equipment for the entire duration of restoration work in the church. Father Pavlo Vyshkovskyi OMI, the parish rector, signed on behalf of the parish.
The estimated project cost is approximately 1 million euros. This amount covers the manufacture and installation of scaffolding and priority emergency work. Full restoration of the neo-Gothic temple is a significantly more expensive task and currently has no financial commitments.
What was signed and what remains declarations
In addition to the scaffolding agreement, insurer PZU SA and Polimex Mostostal SA signed a letter of intent — a document without legal obligations — regarding the creation of an initiative group called the "Rescue Coalition for Saint Nicholas Church in Kyiv." Its goal is to attract new international partners. The financing mechanism for the second and third stages of restoration has not been fixed in the agreements.
"Times change, but the church was, is, and will be"
Father Pavlo Vyshkovskyi OMI, rector of Saint Nicholas Parish
In signing the agreement, Vyshkovskyi drew attention to the symbolic significance of the date: exactly 25 years ago, Pope John Paul II, now canonized, visited the church.
What is this building and why has it taken so long
Saint Nicholas Church is Kyiv's only neo-Gothic structure. Built between 1899–1909 according to a design by Stanisław Wałowski under the supervision of Vladislav Horodetskyi on wet soil in the Lybid valley. In 1936, the Soviet authorities closed the church, removed crosses, bells, and some stained glass.
The return of the parish stretched across three decades of court proceedings. The Supreme Court eventually obligated the Ministry of Culture to transfer the building to the community — and only at the end of 2024–2025 were documents handed over: a free-use agreement for 50 years. During this time, the building sustained new damage: blown-out windows from a Russian missile strike, hazardous trees on the grounds, and general deterioration.
- The Polimex Mostostal agreement is the first with a specific scope and cost.
- Scaffolding is provided free of charge for the entire restoration period.
- The "Rescue Coalition" is currently only a letter of intent without financial obligations.
- Timelines for full restoration have not been announced.
As noted by Maria-Tereza Shibanova, a member of the church's board of trustees, the current decisions are "only the first practical step" — and the parish does not hide this.
The question that will determine the project's fate: whether the "Rescue Coalition" will transform from a declaration of intent into actual financial obligations before the scaffolding is installed — and before the next heating season, when uncovered damage threatens the walls to another winter.
