Rusanivka is a neighborhood surrounded by a canal

Canal

Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...

, the Rusanivs'kyi Kanal, and a tributary from the Dnieper River

Dnieper River

The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...

 in the left-bank part of Kiev

Kiev

Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....

, the capital of Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

. The river and canal make the neighborhood resemble an island. Closer to the river, Rusanivka has a couple small beaches. The neighborhood has many apartment buildings most are which are 9 to 16 stories tall. On the main street in Rusanivka, the Rusanivs'ka Naberezhna, there are many stores and cafés.

Lacking industry, Rusanivka was conceived from the start as a purely residential neighborhood according to the Soviet concept of allocating the so called sleeping districts in large industrial cities. It was envisaged, during creation of this neighbourhood, that the area would be served by two main types of public transportation — buses and river boats on Dnieper and canal, with private cars not being necessary for the residents. The river boats would have created an atmosphere of Venice

Venice

Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...

-like area. In reality, mass transit based on river boats proved uneconomical, and was discontinued. The legacy of this failed project lingers on, as the district was not built to cope with high number of private vehicles. Parking space is scarce, and dwellers often prefer to walk across bridges over the canal to catch buses, trolleybus

Trolleybus

A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...

es, or reach metro

Kiev Metro

The Kiev Metro is a metro system that is the mainstay of Kiev's public transport. It was the first rapid transit system in Ukraine and the third one built in the USSR . It now has three lines with a total length of 63.7 kilometres and 49 stations...

 stations, particularly the nearby Livoberezhna

Livoberezhna (Kiev Metro)

Livoberezhna is a station on the Kiev Metro's Sviatoshynsko-Brovarska Line.The station was opened on November 5, 1965 as part of the westwards eastwards expansion of the Brovary radius and is the first one to be fully on the left bank of the Dnieper River .The station is situated at a junction...

station in the Livoberezhna Microraion

Darnytsia

Darnytsia , is a raion of the Ukrainian capital Kiev.It is the southeastern raion of Kiev located on the left bank of Dnieper river. It borders Dnieper to its west with Holosiiv Raion of Kiev is lying across it, Dnipro Raion of Kiev city to its north, and Boryspil Raion of Kiev Oblast to its east...

.

There are currently plans to build a new residential complex on the island, although the plan has gained opposition from the residents living nearby. Some have even been collecting signatures to protest the plan and go to the raion

Darnytsia

Darnytsia , is a raion of the Ukrainian capital Kiev.It is the southeastern raion of Kiev located on the left bank of Dnieper river. It borders Dnieper to its west with Holosiiv Raion of Kiev is lying across it, Dnipro Raion of Kiev city to its north, and Boryspil Raion of Kiev Oblast to its east...

's administration.