Behind the scenes of an autonomous city: how a new form of housing is born

Development as a neural network

There is an unspoken rule in the real estate market: architecture is talked about willingly, landscaping is talked about with pleasure, and lifestyle is talked about without restrictions. However, the mechanics of making key decisions are usually left behind the scenes. This level is considered an internal company matter, too complex and risky for public discussion.

У Vlasne Misto consciously decided to open this "kitchen". The team assumes that it is at the level of interdisciplinary communication that not only the architecture is formed, but also the economics of the project, its durability and value for the city. The management system described by the company's CEO Yaroslav Korniachenko, more reminiscent of a neural network than the usual vertical: for an outside observer, it is a web, for the participants in the process, it is a clearly tuned mechanism with transparent logic.

For Korniachenko, development begins not with image or marketing, but with risk management and investment logic of a large territory. Let us recall that we are talking about an autonomous cluster city, not a separate residential quarter. It is at the level of the process — the composition of the team, stages of involvement and areas of responsibility — that the quality of the environment and the economics of the project in the long term are laid.

У Vlasne Misto development is working as a joint action of several types of expertise that operate in parallel and constantly interact. The head of the LAWA architectural studio Anatoly Nemtsov, international expert in wooden structures Andrey Bidakov, as well as the company's financial, administrative and commercial departments, in particular the sales department, are involved in making decisions. But why does a developer need to create an architectural studio at all, what does this change in the approach to the product and why is it important to work in close contact with scientists?

Yaroslav Korniachenko: "This is definitely not about reducing the cost of design work. First of all, it is about protecting investments, creating a city development strategy, forming financially acceptable indicators even for 100 m² of land, creating reasonable technical and economic indicators (TEP). This is about experiments that can be unsuccessful or, conversely, very well monetized if you know how to organize processes, listen to and trust the team, and are also ready to experiment, take risks, and learn with it."

The internal architectural studio is about the sustainability and adaptability of the project, about the protection of intellectual values, the development of standards, nodes, constructive solutions, street design passports, and the formation of the “heart and blood vessels” of the future environment.”

Creating an urban environment begins with urban planning, but it is the architectural team that allows you to check the calculations for real viability. Both vertical and horizontal models are able to provide 5–15-minute accessibility of services, but what is decisive is not the radius of accessibility itself, but the quality and content of services.

In this context, details that often remain out of focus play a key role: the proportions of streets and pedestrian zones, the distances between buildings, insolation, spatial connections between blocks and their interaction within larger urban fragments. They determine whether the declared accessibility turns into a comfortable living environment. Therefore, as Yaroslav Korniachenko emphasizes, it is necessary to involve not only architects, but also landscape designers, engineers, constructors and specialists in engineering networks in the work.

The project management system resembles a neural network rather than the usual vertical: for an outside observer, it is a web, for the participants in the process, it is a clearly configured mechanism with transparent logic.

Yaroslav Korniachenko: “Focusing on the estimated cost of buildings, we took the vector to search for constructive solutions that fully correspond to the concept of “rational”. After all, in order to afford complex, durable architecture, the use of natural and expensive facade materials, high-quality window systems and engineering — and this is all about reducing the operating costs of residents and the city as a whole — we must optimize costs without losing quality, safety and comfort.

"We should also not forget that we have to build faster and more correctly. That is why the knowledge and experience of Andriy Bidakov, combined with the creativity and sometimes stubbornness of Anatoly Nemtsov and the team of young architects, is the explosive mixture that gives me the basis and evidence base for making final financial justifications and calculations. Often the benefit is not at the start, but is embedded in the operational and long-term strategy."

Without “restful sleep coefficients”: the role of a scientific consultant in rational construction

In international development practice, close cooperation with scientists is gradually becoming the norm. Researchers work with development teams, representing the interests of companies and acting as carriers of expertise that allows combining innovation with economic feasibility. It is in this role that Vlasne Misto has engaged scientific consultant Andriy Bidakov.

"Science and research results are the drivers of progressive development, focused on technological innovation, and quality improvement. Not only the fact of scientific work itself is important, but also its quality, which directly depends on the integration of scientists into the international community. Without this integration, research often duplicates existing solutions. That is why truly valuable scientific developments are often bought out at the creation stage by companies or their agents who have a sufficient level of expertise. Today, not only publications, but also participation in grant programs and the amount of funding attracted are becoming indicative indicators of a scientist's effectiveness."

The approach described by Andriy Bidakov is based on conscious work with regulatory reserves and engineering models. Understanding the origin of formulas and coefficients allows for optimization of designs and directly affects the economics of the project.

"Unfortunately, many developers do not know what reserves the designer creates when making engineering decisions. Sometimes, due to a lack of professional qualifications, the material consumption of a construction site increases by 30% - due to the so-called "coefficients of peaceful sleep". In order to detect such a situation and save several million, it is necessary to involve another design team in the re-design. By the way, my acquaintance with Yaroslav Korniachenko grew stronger precisely after his visionary decision to check the existing designs of individual buildings created by other design teams. Verification and control of solutions at the design stage create significant advantages for responsible development. Durability and reliability are important factors in construction, provided that the planning horizon is long and stable."

An architect's opinion: why nonlinear communication is the new norm

LAWA Architects, an independent studio formed in parallel with Vlasne Misto, works as a partnership team and is involved in decision-making at all stages. This format allows for working with large and complex projects. In particular, LAWA is simultaneously managing a complex area of ​​over 40 hectares outside Vlasne Misto, which combines housing, commercial functions, HoReCa, public spaces and educational facilities.

The key difference of this model is the culture of shared decision-making, explains architect and head of LAWA Anatoly Nemtsov: "The fundamental difference with the outsourced model is the scale of the vision. When an external studio enters a project, it receives a clearly defined site and tasks. In our case, the site is a city, and the task is formed together with the customer. A number of issues arise that cannot be ignored: vertical planning, water balance, street markings, green areas, public transport and its stops, traffic organization, logistics, pedestrian and bicycle routes, barrier-free access. How can you design a high-quality building without answers to these questions?"

At the same time, such a model implies a high level of responsibility. Influence on the structure of the territory, the street network, flow management and direct access to the customer require the ability to maintain an authorial position and professional distance. It is this level of involvement that both complicates the work and becomes the main advantage.

Here is how Anatoly Nemtsov describes the workflow: “We can determine the proportions of a block, street, or public space at the start so that they work for both the resident and the developer. This allows us to avoid “wasted spaces” — dangerous zones above communications and territories that are neither functionally nor economically suitable.

Designing in this format is more complex and less linear: sometimes decisions made in the process change the initial task, but prevent future problems and turn out to be more effective. We shape the environment from block to block, see all the neighbors, involve external experts in the areas, together develop technological and constructive solutions and understand what mood we want to achieve.

Then this is discussed with the customer: we either make adjustments or defend our position if we consider it better for the city as a whole. A comprehensive project requires the same comprehensive approach — space and time, where all ideas and solutions find a common language. This is exactly the direction our studio works in.”

Sales department: arguments instead of slogans

In this development model, the sales department is not locked in at the final stage and does not work as a separate showcase. It is integrated into the decision-making process and acts as a point of translation of complex architectural and engineering solutions into a language understandable to the future resident. This is how Sales Manager Maria Zadnipryana describes her role at Vlasne Misto.

"We are involved in the process much more deeply than a classic sales department. Architects and engineers explain to us the logic of each key decision: why the walls are this thick, how the insulation components work, why certain materials or technologies were chosen."

This allows us to speak to the client in the language of arguments, not marketing slogans. We can explain how a specific solution affects heating costs, acoustics, microclimate or the durability of the building.”

Feedback in this system is also not limited to dealing with objections or wishes of individual clients. It is considered as part of a management model - a source of data on how the designed environment is actually perceived and used.

“This is part of the project management model. We view feedback as a source of data on how the environment is perceived and used, rather than as formal communication with customers.

Feedback on planning decisions, public spaces, infrastructure or usage scenarios is analyzed and passed on to the architects and developer. If certain requests are repeated and do not contradict the concept, they can be taken into account in subsequent stages or adjustments to the project.

This approach echoes European practices of systemic development of districts - in particular, the experience of Miasteczko Wilanów in Poland, where it was the long-term logic of the environment, rather than individual buildings, that ensured the stability and attractiveness of the district. It is important for us that Vlasne Misto develops according to a similar principle: as a living but managed system, capable of adapting without losing its integrity.

Energy efficiency is node architecture

Does such nonlinear, multi-vector communication between architects, engineers, and scientific consultants really work and produce tangible results? According to Yaroslav Korniachenko, yes. It is the combination of interdisciplinary discussions, engineering analysis, and a scientific approach that allows us to increase the energy efficiency of buildings, regardless of the complexity of the form or the amount of materials used. The key to this, the CEO of Vlasne Misto calls working with nodes.

“Energy efficiency is primarily the architecture of the nodes. The first and most important node is the connection of window systems, waterproofing and the actual formation of a hermetic contour of the building. You can buy the most expensive window systems and mount them on adhesive foam - and it will be like a Mercedes on 13-inch wheels: expensive, but non-functional, with a loss of up to 70% efficiency.

We often use remote installation of window systems with a clear and understandable connection of facade materials in one horizontal and vertical line. This is not only about energy efficiency, but also about aesthetics and the value of the exterior of the house.

The design of the building directly affects energy efficiency. Incorrectly formed solutions for consoles or unplanned lowering of the slab on the terraces in the future lead to either cold bridges or the appearance of additional steps from the interior space to the terrace. Consoles are also about energy efficiency, because they form shading and a space protected from precipitation.

"The use of wood + concrete or wood + metal combinations in residential and commercial buildings is simultaneously about aesthetics, speed of construction and reduction of the cost of foundation works. But also about energy efficiency: absence of cold bridges, cost optimization of balconies and terraces and a very expressive architectural result."

Andriy Bidakov immediately suggests looking at energy efficiency more broadly — not as a set of individual technical solutions, but as a matter of scale, regulation, and systems thinking.

"In Ukraine, energy efficiency is still often associated with replacing windows or local insulation of facades. This is exactly how this topic has looked in practice for a long time. One of my German colleagues, speaking about state tools for stimulating innovation, formulated it very accurately: if the heat regulator in an apartment is an open window, then innovation is impossible. We need a state mechanism that allows us to save money, and then there is a demand for new engineering solutions.

The situation is similar with garbage sorting: even if there are different containers at the entrance, but one car arrives and mixes everything up, the system does not work. The initiative and encouragement for change should largely come from the state.

Instead, building an entire city and working with a large continuous territory makes it possible to work with energy efficiency beyond facades and double-glazed windows. The scale of the city system, the redistribution of functions, and a pre-established map of objects with different levels of energy efficiency allow for the creation of real savings mechanisms and, as a result, consumer savings for residents."

Digital models allow for the synchronization of architecture, engineering, economics, and operations. It is impossible to build a high-quality and comfortable urban environment from scratch if each node is not digitized.

Working with a city as a holistic system — with a large scale, high level of detail, and constant interaction between dozens of participants — is impossible without digital tools. It is digital models that allow you to synchronize architecture, engineering, economics, and operations. It is impossible to build a high-quality and comfortable urban environment from scratch if each node is not digitized and integrated into a common system. BIM design in this context becomes not just a visualization tool, but a way to choose optimal solutions from a large number of scenarios.

As Anatoly Nemtsov explains, it is the depth of the digital model that determines the quality of solutions right from the start: "A detailed BIM model with real "pie" materials, construction and engineering allows us to get a realistic estimate of the cost of construction at the early stages and adjust the project in time. Another illustrative example is vertical planning and working with water. Preserving rainwater on the site, selecting plants, and correctly setting the zero mark for each building reduce the amount of excavation work and reduce operating costs. At the same time, we get a variety of spatial solutions and different scenarios of human movement - value for both the developer and the resident."

Andriy Bidakov draws attention to the gap between the capabilities of BIM design and the real practice of construction sites in Ukraine.

"The introduction of BIM technologies allows for the manufacture of structures and frame elements without classic drawings. However, this technological revolution has not fully reached the construction site," Bidakov regretfully states. "As before, teams without specialized education, without the skills to read drawings or work with digital models on tablets, often work on sites with tape measures in their hands. In this situation, innovation lies in simplifying processes to those that do not require highly qualified personnel on the site. Frame assembly is increasingly reminiscent of furniture assembly - due to high accuracy, maximum level of factory readiness of elements and clear instructions, built almost like comics. Prefabrication, minimizing the number of participants in the process, reducing the number of errors and, frankly, a low level of trust in the foremen - this is what is pushing the industry towards operational innovations today."

Trust as the basis of a shared system

Close data exchange and work with innovations are possible only if there is complete trust between all team members — from engineer to developer.

Andriy Bidakov emphasizes: "Innovative materials and technologies can be implemented only if the values ​​and vision coincide with the developer. The effect is not always instant - it is not about quick savings or acceleration. In most cases, there is a period of accumulation of benefits, after which the result becomes obvious. Working with innovations in construction is always associated with risks and the constant need for adjustments: taking into account the level of training of specialists, operation and maintenance capabilities, as well as cultural usage scenarios. Implementation is a complex process of joint, consistent work of the developer and engineer with awareness of risks and adherence to phasing as a recipe for success.

Moreover, innovative solutions sometimes give a negative result at a certain stage - but it is this that becomes an important indicator for correcting the initial idea and moving towards a global effect. Not all developers are ready for this - and it is important to be honest here. At the same time, participation in such platforms as MIPIM (International March of Real Estate Professionals. - Ed. Note) well demonstrates the level of development precisely because of the depth of involvement in new developments and the ability to work with them in the long term.

Trust in Vlasne Misto goes beyond the internal team and extends to all participants in the system — investors and future residents of the autonomous city. PRAGMATIKA.MEDIA has already written about the three basic principles of development — economy, energy and ecology — in the article “Vlasne Misto — Ukrainian City Village format for like-minded people”. It is no coincidence that the CEO of the project Yaroslav Korniachenko emphasizes: the concept and strategy are possible only with a community of like-minded people. This is what allows us to implement models of energy generation, water supply and waste management not at the level of individual households, but on the scale of the entire Vlasne Misto complex — with the prospect of expanding to the adjacent territories of the Dmytrovsk AH.

Yaroslav Korniachenko: "Our houses are designed according to the principles of energy efficiency and correspond to classes A and B, and partly to C (mainly commercial objects, where aesthetics and functionality have priority). Zero consumption is the Active House / Passive House format, when buildings are able to generate electricity for their own needs or even with a surplus. At the same time, we deliberately do not recommend "sticking" houses with generating elements, because residents can be co-owners of a balancing energy island of the entire city and community. That is why we do not even use the concept of Passive House in marketing.

When we talk about energy savings, we mean its “weight” — the carbon component and embodied carbon in building materials. This is an environmental criterion and at the same time an indicator of the potential for reuse or recycling of materials. It is this that will directly affect the capitalization and market value of buildings in the future.

Today in Ukraine we do not yet pay for the disposal of construction waste as in Europe, and the mass reuse of materials is only taking shape - new materials remain cheaper for now. But this logic is already changing. Therefore, we work not only with energy efficiency, but with a wider set of criteria that in the long term will form an investment benefit for residents who choose to live and work in Vlasne Misto.

Andriy Bidakov: "The scale of Vlasne Misto without technological techniques and innovative solutions simply has no right to exist. We are talking about working with an entire city, not a separate quarter or village, so the multifactorial nature of solutions goes far beyond the boundaries of a building patch or network connection points.

The project is seen as a new element in a complex system with a wider radius of influence. It is the urban scale that allows for the implementation of solutions that are not available for conventional development: not to take out garbage, but to transport it through pipes, as in Stockholm; to use rainwater through multi-level accumulation and metered consumption systems; to preserve the context of the quarter and the view from the window throughout the entire life cycle of the building. Such guarantees are impossible for a developer who works with a separate plot and connects to existing urban systems.

Monoclass vs mixed demographics

At Vlasne Misto, social strategies are seen as a full-fledged tool for sustainability — on a par with technology and engineering. Speaking about a community of like-minded people, the company's CEO fundamentally distances himself from the idea of ​​a mono-class settlement — like an "IT town." A mono-class, he says, is a concentrated risk: an area in which all residents live according to the same economic scenario, vulnerable to any market changes.

Yaroslav Korniachenko: “Mixed demographics generate different sources of demand — for purchase, rental, and services — and create a stable economy for the area throughout the day, week, and year. This reduces dependence on crises in individual segments and prolongs the phase of asset value growth. From an investment perspective, this means more stable rental yields, a longer capitalization cycle, and less risk of price declines. In fact, this is portfolio diversification within one building.

“In Vlasne Misto, architecture, energy efficiency, and social structure are practical tools for risk management, cost reduction, and asset capitalization growth after commissioning,” — Yaroslav Korniachenko

Cities and neighborhoods that are not designed from the very beginning with demographic diversity and housing affordability in mind are not sustainable. They live in short cycles: generations change, and the environment ceases to meet real needs. Monoclassism is often disguised as the categories of “economy”, “comfort”, “business” or “premium”, but this is more about marketing than about life. Different housing formats can coexist within the same building — from compact apartments to penthouses — with equally high quality materials and access to services. Demographic diversity is shaped by the size of the housing unit, not the quality of the environment.

In Vlasne Misto, architecture, energy efficiency and social structure are not ideology. They are practical tools for risk management, cost reduction and asset capitalization growth after commissioning. The city and the quarter should be comfortable for residents of all ages - this is the main indicator of sustainability.”

$1100/m² without compromise: how Vlasne Misto makes a quality city affordable

The principle of social diversification is impossible without economic accessibility. The mixed demographics that the Vlasne Misto team talks about are not formed by declarations - they require different housing formats with a predictable and controlled price per square meter. If the entry threshold is too high, the environment inevitably turns into a mono-class, regardless of architectural or social intentions.

That is why the issue of housing costs in Vlasne Misto is a continuation of the social strategy, and not a separate financial topic. The declared starting price of $1100/m² without compromises in materials and durability seems atypical for the market, but, according to the company's CEO Yaroslav Korniachenko, this is a direct consequence of how the development process is organized.

“The secret is in the combination of standardization and proper organization of processes, as well as optimization of capital and future operating costs. We have a clear system of standardization of materials for the entire duration of the project, while constructive solutions and architectural units are constantly improved taking into account the development of technologies, materials and even our own patents. The price is formed not by materials, but by money lost in processes. We do not save on quality - we eliminate inefficiency. Standardized units reduce the number of rework, repetitive solutions accelerate construction, and process control eliminates hidden costs. As a result, CAPEX (capital expenditures. - Ed. note) per square meter is lower than in chaotic projects, quality is stable, and the starting price of $1100/m² is a consequence of systematic organization, not dumping.

Financial sustainability is based on long-term partnerships with manufacturers and designers. Our project is both a platform for cooperation and an R&D center. And building Ukrainian together with Ukrainians is already a mission. All of the above directly affects investment indicators: housing is sold faster, margins are maintained without reputational risks, and after commissioning, the price increases, since the product does not degrade over time.

When architecture becomes strategy

To sum up, it is not technology or finance that makes a city, but rather strategic decisions that determine whether an environment becomes vibrant and sustainable, or remains a collection of well-assembled but quickly outdated objects. At Vlasne Misto, these decisions are made at different levels — from architectural concept to sales logic — but converge on one point: responsibility for the long-term result.

Anatoly Nemtsov speaks of this responsibility as a fine line between the necessary and the unnecessary: ​​"Decisions made at the stage of the spatial planning concept can change the construction budget by 30–50%, and after the P stage (the stage of working documentation. — Ed. note) it is almost impossible to correct this without losing quality. Therefore, it is important to have a sense of what is appropriate to do and what is an unnecessary financial burden for the customer. It is better to have a proven, understandable basic solution, and where there is human contact with the material or space that affects the mood, invest time in best practices and details of the user experience. It is about attention to the end user: to comfort, safety, sensors, live communication. Ideally, these things are invisible: they simply work. This is what should become the basic minimum and norm."

Andriy Bidakov emphasizes that this is impossible without a fixed vision of the whole: "The value and uniqueness of Vlasne Misto lies in the approved global planning and orientation towards comfort as a basic value for the residents of the entire city. It is about free movement across a large territory according to clear rules of coexistence. It is this articulation of the context of life that is realized through urban and technological solutions agreed upon by a single group of visionaries."

And from a sales perspective, this strategy is conveyed not through promises, but through the understandable logic of the environment, explains Vlasne Misto Sales Manager Maria Zadnipryana: “We start not with square meters, but with the logic of life. We explain that Vlasne Misto is a holistically designed environment, where every decision has long-term meaning. It is not about the sum of houses, but about the urban fabric: how the neighborhoods, courtyards, public spaces are organized, how residential, service, and public functions are combined.

It is not technology or finance that makes a city, but rather strategic decisions that determine whether an environment becomes vibrant and sustainable, or remains a collection of well-assembled but quickly outdated objects.

"A person sees not only the planning, but also the scenarios of using the space: how they move around the city, where they spend time, how different parts of the environment interact. In fact, we are not selling an apartment, but the confidence that the environment will not depreciate, but will develop together with the residents."

Sometime in 1999, when the great architect, visionary and theorist Rem Koolhaas became cramped within the confines of the classical architectural practice of OMA, he founded AMO, a research structure working with media, politics, energy, culture and strategies. It was the moment when, in his own words, “building ceased to be a question of architecture and became a question of strategy.”

It seems that this is where Vlasne Misto is today. Here, architecture, engineering, economics, and social models no longer exist separately. They are assembled into a single managerial neural network — complex, nonlinear, but capable of working with the city as a long-term asset.