the disappearing city and the emerging city

The text was written and published in the weekly NIN edition on January 04.01.2024, XNUMX.

When we look back at the year 2023, it is clear to us that Belgrade is permanently changing. And the problem is not that it changes, change is not necessarily a bad thing, but the question is in which direction it changes, in what way it is done and for whose needs. The practice of planning the city through urban projects (or odocatively), without yet having adopted the main strategic document, the General Urban Plan until 2041 (GUP), as well as the continuous struggle for every piece of greenery and the preservation of Belgrade's symbols and cultural-historical landscapes, marked is also this year. However, in addition to favoring private interests, special public attention was attracted by projects and plans related to some of the symbols of Belgrade, and almost in the category of precedents, and regulations by which individual interests and material benefits are legalized by laws to the detriment of the public interest and the democratic system.

The year began with BIRN research that showed that Belgrade is a paradise for wild construction, and that 450 square meters of residential buildings built after 000 were legalized, even though the current law does not allow it. It is also stated that it is a systemic practice that some have taken advantage of for dizzying enrichment. So, systematically, the pockets of the powerful are filled through (housing) construction, instead of creating policies and practices whose basic intention is that every person has a roof over his head and lives in a healthy and prosperous city. 

This year, too, Belgrade is rich in examples of just such systemic practices, which we can already consider trends in planning, so although difficult, we managed to make an overview of the year and our top 10 while a thousand flowers bloom. 

10. New old Post Office building

The Montipajton urban project was presented to the public before the end of the year. Namely, it was proposed to demolish the current modernist building of the Post Office, to build a new one that will be the same as the one from the beginning of the 20th century according to the project of Momir Korunović, and not to be a post office. Therefore, the built old Post Office will not be a post office, but will be a cultural center, and its purpose will be two-thirds commercial. You could actually conclude that it is a great contextual fit, because in the immediate vicinity there is the largest shopping center called Galerija.   

9. Gardenias, elixirs and golden retrievers

We have noticed that there is a specific trend that sells a beautiful and secure future. These are projects that have two things in common - the first is that the apartment sells you a perfect life, an impeccably decorated interior, a happy family with two children and a golden retriever, and the second is that they bear specific names, so that the tenants feel even more special in relation to to other Belgraders. It is no longer enough to spatially separate the layers of society, now there is also an insistence on symbolic separation, through language and the use of names such as Victory Garden, Elixir Voždovac, The One and the like, it is clear to you where the enumeration is going. 

The frequent use of the word garden is also interesting, as if it is about some magical gardens that remove pollution and unbearable heat, but in reality, on average, only 15% of greenery is in direct contact with the ground. 

8. How do you live when you are not rich?

Under serial number 8, we singled out plans that deal with settlements on the periphery, from which it is clear that some citizens are treated as second- and even third-class citizens. The plan that confirms this is precisely the one for Mali Mokri Lug, which cancels the decision that the tram tracks go further from Ustanička Street into this neighborhood. Currently, there are three bus lines from the settlement, the ends of which are Šumice or Cvetkova pijaca. Therefore, since the residents of that settlement are not provided with a connection to the city center where many perform their daily and existential duties, the plan also gives a clear position on the importance of public transportation. In the context of the climate crisis and mass urbanization, public transport is considered an important element of sustainable cities, and improving the infrastructure and capacity of public transport is in favor of environmental protection.  

As far as public infrastructure is concerned, a similar practice is found in the plan for Jajince, in which 37 new residential square meters and 14 commercial ones are planned, while preschool institutions are planned for only 520 square meters. According to this plan, the capacities of preschool institutions are sufficient for 70% of children from the settlement included in the plan. The question is what happens to the other children who are below the capacity line, but also where are the other facilities and spaces of public purpose, which will serve the residents of the settlement for the purpose of social protection, health services, recreation, culture, education? 

7. Rakovica is a new mecca for investors, but not for citizens

In Rakovica, during the previous year, three detailed regulation plans were in the drafting stage, which together cover an area of ​​658ha, and it seems that the continuation is still waiting for us. The purpose that is dominantly represented in these plans is housing, while public services, recreational areas, greenery and other contents appear only in outlines. No one hears from the citizens who live in the settlement that they need a park, a kindergarten, a cultural center, a sports center, organized public areas, places for public gatherings or that the reconstruction of one of the main roads, started 6 years ago, is still not completed. 

Here you can also see the city's relationship with industrial heritage buildings, for example IMR, where 200 square meters of new housing and 40 square meters of public services are planned. Perhaps this seems like a completely correct square footage set aside for public purposes, however the plan itself states that, in addition, some 700 preschoolers and 400 elementary school students from the newly planned settlement will remain open to a place in a kindergarten or elementary school. In addition to the IMR complex, the factory complex "21. Maj", on the site of which the construction of an object three times higher than what is allowed is planned. Let's be clear, no one expects old buildings to fall into disrepair, but it is necessary to consider how they could be repurposed for public purposes, instead of building residential blocks and concreting green areas. 

6. Moving the Zoo

At the beginning of February, news broke that the Zoo was being moved from Kalemegdan, and after a short mysterious silence, the mayor decided to reveal the location of the relocation - somewhere on Ada. To begin with, we would like to point out that it is desirable to move the Zoo from Kalemegdan, because it is a small space that is not adequate for the life of animals, and in addition, it is a heat island that is difficult to survive in the summer. If the city already insists on keeping animals in this tourist attraction format, then it is necessary to provide them with basic living conditions. What certainly cannot be done is to deliberately choose the location where the Zoo will be moved, (this can never be done for anything, and that's exactly what planning is for) so it turns out to be a location where people live for decades already. Whatever the legal background of this settlement, the city cannot ignore the fact that people live in that place, and it is necessary to first provide adequate housing protection or an alternative, or look for another location for the Zoo. 

5. Hotel Jugoslavija - continuation of the privatization of the coast

When we mentioned in the introduction the erasure of the symbol of Belgrade, one such act is the plan for Hotel Yugoslavia, that is, for almost 12 hectares of land around the hotel and the building itself. The plan states that the hotel was devastated during the wars and that it is no longer possible to renovate it, but it is therefore possible to partially demolish it and partially upgrade it to a height of 155m. According to the higher order plan, the maximum height is 37m. However, if you are skilled enough and have the city administration on your side, you can manipulate the idea of ​​a "project of exceptional importance" in detailed regulation plans, and thus go to heaven under the clouds. 

The citizens of Belgrade reacted violently to this plan and wrote numerous remarks, because here it is not only a question of the hotel as a cultural and historical symbol, but also of the entire coastline and Zemunski Quay, which should be publicly accessible. The waterfront is a public space that is actively used, and if it is filled exclusively with luxury amenities, everyone who has enjoyed the river until now will no longer be able to afford it. 

4. King's Slavija 

This year's demolition in Slavija disturbed the public because this time three houses were demolished, which had great architectural value and whose facades should have been preserved according to the terms of the Secretariat for Urban Planning. We witnessed that this was not done, but that the area was cleared and ready for the construction of the "King's Circle Residences", with more than two hundred apartments in four slats, an accompanying spa center, a children's playroom and a large area for a garage. Commercial facilities are also planned, such as shops, restaurants and office space. In addition to this project, in the second plan on Slavija, it is planned to build 36 thousand square meters of commercial space on the site of the recent public parking lot, as well as a cultural institution, which should be a library, a reading room and a place for small-scale events.

The question that arises is where all these people will stop and how will we move through and around the busiest roundabout, and the answer seems to be found in Jay's lyrics - buy your stuff, you're still doing well, you better you go back where you came from.

3. Fair - hit the heritage and, normally, continue to rob the coast

The President of Serbia informed the public through his favorite form of communication - via TV media - that the land on which the Fair is located has become the property of Belgrade on the Water. This clearly states that the expansion and construction of Belgrade on the water will continue, this time more legally and (we hope) without demolition at night, but still the demolition of all buildings, except for Hall 1, which has protection. 

On the website of the Irish architectural bureau, we found out that, believe it or not, luxury housing, which has already been mentioned so many times, is being planned for this area, as well as a Ferris wheel, as an additional attraction. So, the first problem here is that this entire coastal stretch, and potentially also Hall 1 that was found there, is deprived of the status of public purpose, and then also that cultural and historical objects are treated very nonchalantly, without respect for history, heritage, technological and technical achievements, and also to those people who created this city and left a big mark. The values ​​of a society and time are read through architecture and urban planning, and we fear that ours will be read through concreting, betting shops, shopping centers and thousands of empty residential square meters in low-quality buildings. 

2. Law on Planning and Construction - a love letter to investors

The first half of this year was marked by the process of amending the Law on Planning and Construction, carried out in the now traditional manner - without public discussions and behind closed doors. This time, the secret tailoring of public policies and regulations of this country has gone too far - the government adopted the bill a day after the tragedy at the "Vladislav Ribnikar" elementary school. This act only pointed the spotlight on the inextricable symbiosis of the ruling structures and the investor sector, since the most significant change in this law is the abolition of the fee for land conversion. Thus, one of the most important public resources of every city was gifted to a handful of the economic elite.

The rest of the amendments to the law aim to speed up and facilitate the obtaining of building permits, without unnecessary restrictions for investors. Citizens can no longer be parties to the building permit issuance process, because they annoy investors. Construction permits practically have no expiration date, and the law also regulates the deregulation of the unified procedure. All in all, for some, these changes will make life much less stressful, pockets drastically fuller, smiles wider - but you neki it won't be us.

1. EXPO 2027 – robbery of the century

Iiiiiii number one on our list is the robbery of the century, namely, a project presented to us as capital, on which, normally, our life and overall prosperity depend. We will harness all our strength and money to make EXPO 2027 happen, which, according to the announcement of the rulers, will change the image of Serbia in the whole world in 2027, and after that - who cares. How will we get back the huge amount of money we invested in the construction of the complex on 113 hectares, which after the end of the EXPO are no longer useful. This thesis is not our arbitrary assessment, but it is shown by the experience of other cities, such as Hanover, Seville and Milan, where the EXPO took place as a one-time exhibition, and the infrastructure collapsed afterwards. 

But even if we don't know or understand the economic logic behind this, the preparatory steps taken for this project have already gone too far, and we believe there will be many more until the exhibition itself. The most dangerous so far is precisely the cancellation of the public tender by introducing a special law - lex specialis, given that it is a project that is claimed to be worth one billion euros. The concern is that under these conditions, when there are no more bidders, costs can be much higher than under conditions of full competition. So, filling personal pockets at it's best!

The plan that was not adopted this year either - GUP 2041

While we are bombarded with irreparably harmful projects and plans from all sides and while we fear for our future in this city, we must not forget that there is one plan that just needs and can foresee a future in which there is room for all of us and in which this city is a good place to live - but that the city administration persistently avoids bringing it. This year was the third year in a row that Belgrade does not have a strategic plan, a General Urban Plan, with a time horizon of 2041.

In the absence of a strategic approach, point-based "planning" prevails, as if not a single point in the city has any influence or connection with any other; attitude towards the cultural and historical heritage, which reflects the arrogant belief that no one built and lived in this city before us and for us; rampant destruction of the environment and green infrastructure, as if no one will live in this city after us; expanding the city over agricultural land, as if it were a renewable resource; the construction of hundreds of millions of square meters, as if millions of new residents will arrive tomorrow, while the actual demographic projections are actually completely the opposite. Without GUP, it is impossible to plan future development and establish a vision of the city and society, and therefore we can freely say that the development of Belgrade has been fundamentally stopped for a long time. Without an umbrella plan that defines, prescribes and protects the public interest in the development and planning of the city, and which puts it ahead of the economic interests of individuals, we are awaiting a very similar urban review next year as well.

Now we all know very well from experience that having a plan on paper, which is not implemented means nothing even though it may be a great plan. That is why the fight for better city planning is being waged on several different fronts and institutions that should implement the plans. Nevertheless, the first step is certainly to have a good plan in general, and that is why we do not give up on advocating the participatory development of the GUP. We, as citizens of Belgrade, can make a miracle out of our city, only if we unite. There is hope and opportunity for change, but it is important that we all get actively involved. If you're wondering where to start, start with your neighborhood and we're here to help!