Parking policy: No agreement between the Municipality of Budva and the Hotel Group "Budvanska rivijera"

There will most likely be no agreement between the Municipality of Budva and the Hotel Group "Budvanska rivijera" regarding two parking lots in Petrovac, ahead of this summer season.

While the local administration claims that the largest hotel company in Montenegro, which is majority-owned by the state, is ignoring them, the "Budva Riviera" claims that it will keep one parking lot for its hotel guests, while the land, which the Municipality of Budva has eyed, has not yet been registered with the hotel group.

Politics played its part in this situation, too, because it is known that the tourism metropolis is governed by an informal coalition consisting of "Budva our city" of the Mayor of the Municipality Nikola Jovanović, the European Alliance and the Democratic Party of Socialists, while the "Budva Riviera" is under the control of the majority in the state - the Europe Now Movement, the Democrats and the New Serbian Democracies, who are the opposition in the Budva parliament.

"We don't have an agreement this year," said the Mayor of the Municipality, Nikola Jovanović.

Last year, the Municipality of Budva sent a letter to the HG "Budvanska rivijera" to purchase a plot of land near "Volija", in the center of Petrovac, measuring 4.400 square meters, which was returned to the Hotel Group after a court dispute. Another location that the Municipality is interested in is the one near the Post Office, which would be managed by "Parking servis".

It is known that the overdeveloped Petrovac, especially during the summer months, is crammed with parking spaces, and these two parking lots are currently chained and not in use.

Jovanović emphasized that in previous years they had reached an agreement with the "Budva Riviera", when the Municipality of Budva, or rather its company "Parking Servis", managed the parking lot at the Post Office.

"This year we approached them officially. We had a meeting, myself personally, with associates and the board of directors of the "Budvanska Riviera". In addition to this location near the Post Office, we also requested the joint construction of certain parking spaces. We did not find understanding. I ask whether we need such a "Budvanska Riviera", to serve the citizens of Budva, the tourist industry, tourism, or to serve something else", emphasized Jovanović.

As he says, he fears that the parking lot will not be owned by "Budvanska Riviera", but by a private person with whom, as he points out, a certain deal was made.

"I would like future events to refute me, to say that I am wrong. It is not normal for "Budvanska rivijera" to rent it out to someone else, except for the Municipality of Budva and "Parking servis". It is normal for us to pay a certain price for it and there is no problem. We do not even have to make money on that parking lot, because "Parking servis" is a liquid, solvent company, we only want to provide a public service, so that our guests have a place to park. I am afraid that the background here is something else, that resources are being used for personal enrichment and that these are some political deals from previous political campaigns. Here is a public appeal, let us make an agreement and we will enter tomorrow and provide the service", said Jovanović.

He emphasized that he had discussed the construction of an underground garage with the board of directors of "Budvanska Riviera".

"It is logical to do it now. The Municipality of Budva is ready to be an investor. They have spent enough money to renovate the Tourist Resort "Slovenska plaža", 42 thousand euros per room, we will invest the money, that is, the citizens of Budva, to build a garage. We still do not have an answer. Without a positive answer from "Budva Riviera", the Municipality of Budva cannot enter that space, nor use it illegally. We want an agreement", stressed Jovanović.

"Budvanska Riviera" told "Vijesti" that the entire situation regarding the two parking lots was presented at a meeting with representatives of the Municipality.

"The "Zetagradnja" parking lot, or rather the plot that was returned to "Budvanska Riviera" according to the 2025 verdict, has not yet been registered in the cadastre, and accordingly, HG "Budvanska Riviera" is not the holder in the real estate list. A meeting was held with the Board of Directors at the initiative of the Municipality of Budva regarding the construction of a garage on the aforementioned plot, and clear steps necessary for considering the initiative were agreed. As for the parking lot "by the Post Office" in Petrovac, it will be used by the "Palas" hotel, "Castellastvo" and the new "Palas Lux" hotel. In addition to hotel guests, the capacities will be fully available to citizens and tourists," the hotel company emphasized to "Vijesti".

As a reminder, in August last year, Jovanović sent a letter to the then Board of Directors of HG "Budvanska rivijera" with an offer that the Municipality of Budva was ready to purchase two attractive, million-dollar plots in the heart of Budva and Petrovac from the hotel company.

Namely, the Municipality has caught the eye of a 1.487 square meter plot, next to the Avala hotel, 50 meters from the Old Town, which is currently the only green space in the very center of Budva.

After the privatization of "Avala", this plot, which was urbanized and on which a multi-storey building was planned, remained in the ownership of HG "Budvanska rivijera" and is located in the hinterland of the parking lot in front of the "Mogren" hotel, owned by the Municipality of Budva.

"I am writing to you officially on behalf of the Municipality of Budva so that, in accordance with your procedure and jurisdiction, you may consider the possibility of a potential sale of cadastral plots owned by HTP "Budvanska rivijera" AD Budva. Bearing in mind that the Municipality of Budva is committed to the goal of permanently solving the problem of traffic congestion and the lack of parking space in the area of ​​the Municipality of Budva, we believe that the purchase of the indicated plots, along with the fact that the Municipality of Budva is the owner of the neighboring plots, would create plots with significant capacities for the construction of a multi-storey underground garage at this location," Jovanović stated at the time in a letter, which was published by "Vijesti".

As Jovanović explained, the goal of the Budva Municipality is to preserve the only green area in the city center by building an underground garage.

Jovanović then sent a second letter to the Hotel Group, in which the Municipality was interested in purchasing a plot of land in the center of Petrovac.

Namely, this is a plot of land that was returned to HG "Budvanska rivijera" of 4.448 square meters, after the Podgorica-based company "Zetagranja" collected four million euros from the hotel company after a marathon court dispute, because the contract from 15 years ago, when it purchased the aforementioned land for the construction of hotel facilities, was not honored.

"Given that the Municipality of Budva is committed to the goal of permanently solving the problem of traffic congestion and the lack of parking space in the Petrovac area, we believe that by purchasing the plots, coupled with the fact that the Municipality of Budva is the owner of the neighboring plots, we would create plots with significant capacities for the construction of a multi-storey underground garage at this location," said Jovanović.

As in the case of the project in Budva, the Municipality of Budva, as Jovanović stated in the letter, wants to preserve the green area in the heart of Petrovac by building an underground garage.