There is no flaw in the work done. In short, that would be a cross-section of what will happen, after several decades-old trees have been cut down in the center of Podgorica, in the immediate vicinity of the Nature Monument Park-brdo Gorica, on the lot "Okova".
The trees were protected by the Detailed Urban Plan "Nova varoš 2", which also includes the plot where the foundations for the underground garage of the future residential building are currently being dug. The chief city architect, as they said from the Capital City, did not agree with the conceptual design of the multi-family housing facility, but his opinion was refuted by the state architect.
And the investor, as they told "Vijesti" from "Okovo", did not want the trees to be cut down, the greenery, they claim, was also the reason for building there. The trees were cut down, they say, after digging the foundation for the garage and storms, the earth began to collapse and the first tree fell. Then five more were cut.
The company "Okov" bought the plot at the end of May 2021 from "Televex", also a private company from Podgorica. As they told "Vijesti", they submitted the conceptual solution to the Chief City Architect's office on July 9 of the same year.
"The conceptual solution envisages a building for multi-family housing, P+3 floors. The form of the building was specially adapted to the then existing greenery. We received consent only on June 29, 2022, and that was through the appeal procedure before the chief state architect. With a positive response to our complaint, it was stated that the planned facility meets all urban planning parameters, and that it is positioned in such a way that it does not endanger the existing greenery, and that along with the preservation and rehabilitation of the existing greenery, the planting of new ones is also planned. "Due to the new waiting period for utility bills in the Podgorica municipal services, we reported construction at the end of November, and started in mid-December 2022," they told the editorial office.
At the end of the same month, before the New Year, as they said, the excavation for the underground garage was mostly completed.
"On the ninth of January, on the day when we planned to start concrete work on the future underground garage, Podgorica was hit by a storm, with huge amounts of precipitation and very strong wind. During the night between January 9 and 10, there was a large landslide on the plot. Please note that, which is unusual for Podgorica, the soil is very loose up to a depth of four meters. "Huge pieces of soil, five to ten cubic meters in volume, fell off from under the row of trees that we planned to preserve," they said from "Okovo".
They also add that on the morning of January 10, they submitted a request to the Podgorica Secretariat for Traffic to close the street, and that they sent a request to the Municipal Police for an immediate tour of the area.
"Around noon on the same day, a tree fell on Beogradska Street. We alerted all competent services - from the ordinary police, through the communal police and communal inspection, to the Secretariat for Transport and the public company Zelenilo. An employee from Zelenil went to the field and told us that the cypresses must be removed urgently, because they will all fall in turn "in the next hour or two or tonight", but that we have to do it ourselves, because city services and companies do not have jurisdiction on private plots. Driven above all by the desire to save the lives of passers-by, and then also the surrounding property, we quickly organized and removed five more trees that were in the critical zone", they said from "Okovo".
They add that they, as investors, "are not required by any document or regulation... to protect the existing greenery".
"But we designed the building that way because of our own love for greenery and a humane living space. "We regret that due to soil erosion, part of the trees had to be removed, and after construction, we will completely green the plot, taking care of the surrounding plant cultures," they told "Vijesta".
The future residential building is being built on plots 2325 and 2326, KO Podgorica II, UP46a, Zone A, DUP "Nova varoš 2". In the text of that DUP, the authors, among other things, state that "in the block greenery between Ivan Crnojevića Boulevard, Rista Stijovića Street and Beogradska Street, species with which intensive greening was carried out in the 50s and 60s of the XNUMXth century dominate", and that "extremely valuable trees (Pinus halepensis, Cupressus sempervirens, Cedrus deodara) are present, which should be protected and preserved from decay and devastation with adequate care measures".
The Ministry of Ecology, Spatial Planning and Urbanism, which issued "Okovu" a construction permit at the end of June 2022, did not respond to the questions of "Vijesti". Among other things, the questions also related to the extract from the DUP, which refers to block greenery.
From the Capital City, they said that the Chief City Architect did not give a positive opinion on the conceptual solution for the "Okova" building, that the procedure was conducted for almost a year, that, as they said, they offered a different solution, "with a clear note that in no case is acceptable removal of existing valuable trees”.
"The possibility of exchanging plots was considered, which the investor refused, insisting on the right to dispose of his own property. Namely, during the consideration of the attached conceptual plan, it was established that the building crosses the given construction line for the underground parts of the building, locating a part of the underground garage along the very border of the plot. The investor referred to the possibility of moving the construction line with the consent of the neighbors, giving his own consent, since he is the owner of the neighboring cadastral plots. Also, they stated that by moving the building within the construction line, they would be forced to remove the existing valuable trees," they said from the capital.
As they said, the Office of the Chief City Architect "found that the submitted consent is not valid for the reason that the neighboring cadastral plots are intended for public roads and are subject to expropriation".
"With the conclusion that, although the decades-old trees are located on a private plot, a positive opinion cannot be given to their removal, considering that, due to the very position of the urban plot, they are integrated into the green belt of the Gorica forest park", writes the response of the capital city .
As the investor did not fulfill the requirements of the chief city architect, as they said, a Decision on rejection was made, but the investor appealed to the Chief State Architect.
"The Office of the Chief City Architect, forwarding the documentation to the Chief State Architect, emphasized the position 'that UP 46a, zone A, should not be construction land intended for the construction of a residential building, and it is assumed that the purpose of this plot was not properly treated by the planning document, which, except that is located at the very foot of the most important green area in the city, it is clumsily defined in the immediate vicinity of public facilities (Small Sports Stadium and the future Natural History Museum)'. The chief state architect, solving the investor's complaint, issued a decision on consent, which created the conditions for the investor to continue with the preparation of project documentation and the process of registering the construction of the building," said the capital city.
As they said, this "caused consequences for the area that the Office of the Chief City Architect tried to avoid even under the threat of a lawsuit from the investor".
"Also, as stated in the rejection decision, the positioning of the basement on the plot as provided for in the conceptual solution approved by the chief state architect, endangers the reconstruction of Beogradska Street provided for in the planning document," they said from the capital.
Construction is possible, but with nature protection
Gorica Forest Park was declared a natural monument in June last year. Beogradska street, as well as the plot on which "Okov" is being built, according to the boundaries of the park, are located within the boundaries of the protective belt (buffer zone).
In the protective zone, according to the Decision on the declaration of a natural monument, the construction of buildings is allowed in accordance with the valid spatial planning documentation "with the application of the conditions and guidelines of nature protection, as well as environmental protection measures that are related to the spatial planning and project documentation, and are carried out through the procedures of strategic impact assessment and environmental impact assessment".
As stated, the "construction of buildings that lead to significant degradation of natural habitats" is prohibited.
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