The retaining wall of the medieval fortress and the cultural and historical monument Citadel, one of the most monumental buildings in the Old Town, is in a catastrophic state and is collapsing from the sea side, which is the result of more than three decades of neglect.
This was told to "Vijesti" in the "Stari Grad" local community, whose representatives visited the sea coast from Stari Grad to Mogren beach during the weekend and, as they stated, found a catastrophic situation.
They warn that, although for the past few years they have pointed out that the state of the ramparts on the sea side is extremely bad, nothing has been done, which is confirmed by the photo documentation they made and which they submitted to "Vijesta", where it can be seen that even several square meters of stone the rampart collapsed into the sea.
The guardian of Budva's history, the Citadel is located on the southern part of the rocky ridge in old Budva, but the ramparts have not been restored for three decades.
"We have pointed out these problems, but the restoration of the Old Town on the sea side was never done after the earthquake reconstruction. Renovation is needed every year due to weather conditions that slowly destroy the facade. The old town is a jewel that we must preserve and maintain as a matter of urgency", said the Local Community "Stari grad".
Two years ago, they made a public appeal to local and state institutions, warning that Budva's greatest monumental value, the old city ramparts from the 15th century, had literally been left to their own devices for 30 years, and that the damage caused to that cultural property was a serious warning that it is high time to start protecting them, because they are in danger of collapsing.
At that time, the local community told "Vijesta" that they were seriously concerned about the state of the ramparts, because in some places there was a lack of stone that had been washed away by the sea.
Unfortunately, their fears have come true, and now the situation is even more serious because the supporting wall of the old town fortress is collapsing.
The old people of Budva used to maintain the ramparts, especially on the sea side, and this was always done exclusively in mid-January and February, because that's when there are big storms and low tides. The water level is lower then and they were able to repair the walls and repair the damage that occurred during the year. However, this was not done for decades, so today the ramparts are neglected, and their condition on the sea side is really forbidding.
Taking into account the cultural and historical importance of the ramparts, the Local Community said that it is necessary to protect the Old Town as soon as possible and prevent further collapse.
The situation is no better on Mogren beach either, because as they stated during the tour, they realized that erosion is cutting down century-old pines and threatening the disappearance of the other Mogren beach.
"Erosion threatens the hundred-year-old pines on Mogren beach and the beach itself. Mogren Beach is one of the most beautiful beaches in Montenegro and the people of Budva are especially emotionally attached to it. The deterioration of the beach is difficult for all of us, and we demand immediate restoration of the beach. We found works on the road to Mogren and we would like to send all the praise for the rehabilitation of the road that collapsed last year due to weather conditions. We all have to work together to make this city an example for everyone in the region", they said in the local community.
The public company Morsko dobro carried out several urgent repairs to the path leading to Mogren beach, which is always hit by large waves due to storms, and often damages both the promenade and fences. For many years, this public company has been conducting research on erosion, which, among other things, has affected the Mogren beach, whose size has decreased over the past century.
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