Despite Prime Minister Milojko Spajić's announcement that citizens can expect the first apartments on Velje Brdo in mid-2026, the realization of that plan is still far from complete.
So far, almost ten thousand applications for interest in the project have been received, but Slaven Radunović's department does not want to comment on it until the Spatial Urban Plan (SUP) of the Capital City is adopted.
The professional community points to the project's shortcomings and doubts that the ambitious plan to move the first tenants in by 2026 could be realized.
"We expect the first apartments to be distributed to citizens sometime in mid-2026," Spajić said on September 21st last year.
Spajić claims that citizens could move into the first apartments on Velje Brdo in 15 months.
However, we are still far from the Montenegrin dream, as Spajić described the project.
The Ministry of Spatial Planning does not want to comment on how far the implementation has come until the Capital City's Urban Development Plan is adopted.
The KANA Association of Architects considers the Velje Brdo project ill-considered and does not think it could be realized anytime soon.
"So if we don't have analyses, if we don't have environmental impact assessments, if we don't have demographic assessments, if we don't have detailed economic assessments, and at the same time the people who want to implement it say nothing will stop us, that should deeply concern everyone," said Sonja Dragović, a member of the Association of Architects KANA.
The government said there was no reason to worry. A square meter of apartment on Velje Brdo will cost 1.000 euros with an interest rate of 1,2 percent per year, and there will be space for over 40 people.
However, Goran Kapor, a journalist from the economics department at the Nezavisni dnevnik Vijesti, explains what is holding back the implementation of the ambitious plan.
"It is absolutely impossible for it to happen next year, not even in three years. So, all that is needed to adopt the PUP in a month or two is to start drawing up detailed urban plans, developing projects, and conducting geological surveys, because the Velje Brdo terrain has never been surveyed. Also, the issue of infrastructure must be completely resolved before that," said Kapor.
For now, a portal has been activated where citizens can apply for the project.
According to information from the Government, almost ten thousand expressions of interest have been received. In addition, this year's budget has planned ten million euros for the Velje Brdo project.
However, Television Vijesti was unable to find out from Slaven Radunović's department how much money has been spent so far.
On the other hand, Dragović proposes a different way to improve housing policy.
"What would be realistic to achieve by the end of the next quarter is for the Government to say that we will regulate rent differently in the country. Rents will be reduced and subsidized or taxed, and in this way citizens will get more affordable housing," said Dragović.
Although the Government's plan was to adopt the Capital City Urban Development Plan by the end of 2024, this did not happen.
Kapor says that Velje Brdo is not the only controversial point in the plan.
"Velje Brdo is just a small part of the spatial and urban plan. Over 400 objections have been submitted to it, which do not only relate to Velje Brdo, but there are a million hidden problems in that PUP that relate to the rest of Podgorica. My opinion is that they wanted to use Velje Brdo to mask the entire situation and hide from us some other things they are planning for Podgorica," said Kapor.
And whether the Velje Brdo project will become the largest urban development project in Montenegro, as announced by the Government, or remain just an empty promise, time will tell.
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