Kyiv TV Tower, Television tower in Kyiv, Ukraine
Kyiv TV Tower is a 385-meter-tall steel lattice structure that dominates the city's skyline and serves as the main broadcasting hub for television and radio across the region. Its central core measures 4 meters in diameter and houses two maintenance elevators that support the facility's daily operations.
Designed first for Moscow, the project was moved to Kyiv after Moscow chose the Ostankino Tower; Soviet authorities then ordered the Kyiv version shortened by almost 30 percent. Construction ran from 1968 to 1973 on the site of the Lukianivka Jewish cemetery, closed in 1966, and cost about $12 million. The tower was completed in 1973, the year Kyiv was the capital of the Ukrainian SSR.
The site sits where the Lukianivka Jewish cemetery once stood until 1966, a fact that continues to shape how people view and discuss this location. This layered past remains part of the place's identity for many residents.
The tower is not open to the public, so it can only be viewed from outside. It stands at Dorohozhytska Street 10 in the Syrets district, next to Lukianivka cemetery and Babyn Yar; the nearest metro station is Dorohozhychi. The best views of the full 385-metre structure are from a distance, since a dead zone weakens the signal around its base.
The tower was designed first for Moscow, but Moscow chose the Ostankino Tower instead; when the project moved to Kyiv, Soviet authorities ordered it shortened by almost 30 percent so it would not rival the Moscow structure. It still stands 60 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower while weighing about three times less.
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