Andriyivskyy Descent (literally: Andrew’s Descent) is a historic descent connecting Kyiv‘s Upper Town neighborhood and the historically commercial Podil neighborhood. The street, often advertised by tour guides and operators as the “Montmartre of Kyiv”, is a major tourist attraction of the city. It is included in the list of national landmarks by the government resolution. In addition, the street is also part of the Kyiv city historic reserve “Ancient Kyiv“, while the St.Andrew’s Church belongs to the National historic reserve “Sophia of Kyiv“.
The Andriyivskyy Descent begins on the summit of the Starokyivska Hora (Old Kyiv mountain) near the ornate late-baroqueSaint Andrew’s Church (which gave the street its current name). The street continues on down and descends to the Podil district where it ends at the Kontraktova Square. In the past times, the descent was known as the Borychiv Descent mentioned as “Borichev uvoz” by Nestor the Chronicler in his Primary Chronicle and in the 12th century poem, The Tale of Igor’s Campaign (Slovo o polku Ihorevim). The descent’s current name is derived from the 18th century, at the time when the Saint Andrew’s Church was erected atop the hill. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the street was mainly inhabited by merchants and craftspeople. Although they are long gone due to the sweeping demographic changes in Kyiv during times of the late Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, the street is once again thriving thanks to its unique topology, architecture, rich history and also many gift shops and small art galleries showcasing various paintings and sculptures by Ukrainian artists. The descent is one of the favorite spots for tourists. It is also notable for the many festivals it holds, including various art festivals and the Kyiv Day celebrations on the last weekend of May. The street’s location in the city and its landmark attraction has made it lately a highly prestigious area, with several new luxurious restaurants. However, the descent’s sewer and water systems have not been upgraded within the past 100 years, thereby underlining the need for a new system to be installed. Although, city authorities have not yet scheduled a new sewer project system to be installed.
Recent talk of the descent’s reconstruction has been going since 2006, when a local grassroots organization aimed at saving the Andriyivskyy Descent collected more than 1,000 signatures to petition local authorities to take action on the descent’s reconstruction. On June 23, 2009, the Kyiv City Council administration approved the reconstruction of the Andriyivskyi Descent, which was officially announced a year earlier by MayorLeonid Chernovetsky. The exact timeline for reconstruction has not yet been adopted, although the reconstruction’s budget has been drafted in the city’s 2010 budget.
