ASTANA – At a town hall meeting at the end of February, Mayor of Astana Imangali Tasmagambetov reported on the progress of work that is planned to be conducted in the city prior to the international specialized exhibition EXPO 2017.
“Astana was chosen as a venue for EXPO 2017. This is a big achievement for Kazakhstan and for the city of Astana. For construction purposes an area of 124 hectares was allocated,” the mayor said.
By that time, architectural wonders and art sites as Opera and Ballet Theatre, Library and the Foundation of the First President, the National Museum, the Center for Space Studies, National Defense University, Indoor City, multifunctional complex “Abu Dhabi Plaza”, hotels “Hilton”, “Marriott”, “Ritz Carlton” and “Four Seasons”, and an Ice Palace for 10,000 seats will have been built and commissioned in Astana.
At the same time, the construction of a new railway station has been started which will be located on “Mynzhyldyk Avenue” just four kilometers away from the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation.
The network of social objects will be significantly extended. In particular, by 2017 it is planned to build 50 kindergartens, which will reduce the shortage of preschool places by 12,000, 30 schools for 36,000 students; and 15 healthcare facilities, including five centres of primary medical care, three polyclinic complexes for 1,000 visits per shift and four 1,000-bed hospitals.
Production capacity of the capital will also significantly amplify. Up to 2017, there will be 12 large enterprises in the city including a pharmaceutical factory for the production of bioequivalent drugs, a refinery, a plant for the production of electro-optical devices, etc.
It is also planned to build a modern botanical garden with a park area of 100 hectares.
“At the same time, a lot of work is to be done on arrangement of future districts of the city. The projects of boulevards, parks and squares are underway and the construction will be completed by 2017. For the next years we have scheduled the construction of a new park along the Yessil River, and a unique ethnic village,” Tasmaganbetov explained.
To date, the city’s central park of culture and leisure, which covers an area of 67.4 hectares, is under reconstruction. After the completion of all works, the number of visits to the park is expected to increase twice and will make more than 100,000 people a day.
“But the most important moment of the EXPO is the involvement of every citizen in this significant process for our city. We declared the name of the exhibition as “Future Energy”. Therefore, it is important now for everyone to realize the role and idea of this exhibition, since basic economy of the electric power in each apartment is directly reflected in the implementation of “green economy” projects,” the mayor said.
