What is the condition of Budva's Old Town, ramparts, but also the Citadel fortress - protected cultural monuments, after four decades of carelessness by state institutions, rampant illegal construction, and devastation by man and nature, will be known after the elaboration of the report for the revaluation of cultural assets.
The Administration for the Protection of Cultural Property informed "Vijesta" that protective measures will be imposed.
"The Administration for the Protection of Cultural Assets is in the process of preparing a study for the revaluation of cultural assets, which also includes the Old Town of Budva with its ramparts. The current situation will be documented in detail within the study, and protection measures will be issued in relation to it. The revaluation process, however, is taking place at a slower pace, due to the lack of financial resources", stated the Administration headed by Mladen Zagarčanin.
They emphasized that it is the duty of the owner, that is, the holders of cultural property, to take care of it, and that the Administration for the Protection of Cultural Property is at your disposal in the procedures that ultimately form the legal conditions for the implementation of protection measures.
The local community "Stari grad" warned last week that the situation in the Old Town is more than alarming, providing "Vijesta" with photos showing the damage and collapse of the retaining wall of the medieval fortress and the cultural-historical monument - the Citadel - one of the most monumental buildings. in the Old Town.
The wall is slowly collapsing on the sea side, and the sea has washed away several square meters of stone.
Although the "Stari grad" Ministry of Health has been pointing out for several years that the condition of the ramparts on the sea side is extremely bad, nothing has been done.
The retaining wall of the Citadel is collapsing
The guardian of Budva's history - the Citadel, is located on the southern part of the rocky ridge in old Budva, and the ramparts have not been restored for three decades.
"We pointed out these problems, but the Old Town on the sea side was never rehabilitated after the earthquake reconstruction. Renovation is needed every year due to weather conditions that slowly destroy the facade. The Old Town is a gem that we need to preserve and maintain as a matter of urgency," said the "Stari Grad" Municipal Council.
Two years ago, they publicly called on local and state institutions to react, warning that Budva's greatest monumental value, the 15th-century old town ramparts, had been left to its own devices for 30 years. They pointed out that the damage caused to this cultural property represents a serious warning that it is high time to start protecting them, because they are threatened with collapse.
The old people of Budva maintained the ramparts, especially on the sea side, and this was always done only in mid-January and February, because at that time there are big storms and low tides. The water level is then lower and they were able to approach the walls and repair the damage
during the year. However, this was not done for decades, so today the ramparts are neglected, and their condition on the sea side is prohibitive.
Taking into account the cultural and historical importance of the ramparts, the Ministry of Health declared that it is necessary to protect the Old Town as soon as possible and prevent further collapse.
Wild construction flourishes within the ramparts
The old town is not "immune" to wild construction either. Nine new houses, 22 floors and more than 1.200 small repairs - it is the result of almost four decades of silent watching of the competent state and local institutions on the events in one of the most beautiful
coastal cities, the Old Town in Budva - a protected cultural monument.
The last state control of the commission of the Administration for the Protection of Cultural Property was carried out in 2014 and it was determined that the Old Town has nine new houses, 22 raised floors and more than 1.200, conditionally speaking, minor changes to the legally protected cultural property. We are talking about new balconies, gazebos, expansion of storefronts, plastic and aluminum windows and doors, street storefronts and showcases, roller doors, iron gratings, awnings, various columns and arches...
According to all criteria, the Old Town should be "removed" from the list of protected cultural monuments.
That wild construction within the ramparts is flourishing is also shown by data from the Institute for the Protection of Monuments' report on the degradation of this cultural treasure, from a decade and a half ago, but also from six years ago, which was done by the then Ministry of Culture.
According to these data, from 1987, when it was rebuilt after a devastating earthquake, in the Old Town until 2003, despite the adopted planning document, 22 floors, or about 1.000 square meters, were illegally built.
From 2003 to 2006, the institute filed 11 criminal charges for "unlawful construction", but the prosecutor's office has not yet prosecuted any of them.
Authorities pass by, but none do anything
Six years after the devastating earthquake in 1979, when the Old Town was destroyed, the Urban Plan was adopted. At the end of the 90s, the municipality of Budva entered into the story of the revision of the planning document and assigned the work to the Construction Institute AD Budva.
Since 1998, when the expert commission was formed, the whole business has remained at a standstill.
Other municipal authorities did not tackle the rampant construction in the Old Town and passed a planning document either.
Wild construction is precisely the most visible in this two and a half millennium old city, which instead of an attractive cultural and historical monument is "turning" into a business center with boutiques and bars, without any order.
Walls pierced due to Rashid's illumination
One of the most brutal examples of the devastation of the Old Town, under the patronage of local authorities, happened in 2015, when the then DPS administration approved the decision of the Secretariat for City Infrastructure, headed by Nikola Divanović, to install illuminations by designer Karim Rašid on the city ramparts.
Rashid's illumination in the form of a double row of light pipes, 250 meters long, was installed on the eve of the 2015 celebration. Due to the shape of the light elements, the decoration has a symbolic name - DNA.
The problem arose because the illumination was placed on metal brackets 1,4 meters long, which were fixed with screws into the centuries-old stone walls.
MZ "Stari grad" then filed a criminal complaint against Divanović for destroying cultural monuments, and the Kotor prosecutor's office filed an indictment.
A year later, the municipality had to remove the lighting and repair the damage.
Bonus video:
