Bratislava's old Zimný prístav port. (source: TASR)
If everything goes as presented by Transport Minister Jozef Ráž (Smer) and Bratislava Mayor Matúš Vallo, the capital city can get ready for one of the biggest real estate "battles" in history.
Plots of land in the Zimný Prístav (Winter Port, located between the Most Apollo and Prístavný Most bridges - Ed. note) will be for sale. It will not be an ordinary sale of land; the fact that the lands will allow for a significantly easier way for the potential real estate projects of interested parties in the area to also be attractive.
Index magazine looked at what is brewing in Bratislava and what impact it may have on the shape of its real estate market.
1 What did the transport minister and the mayor announce?
The basis is the relocation of the cargo shipping port from the Winter Port to the nearby Pálenisko locality (right next to Prístavný Most bridge). The freed space will be transformed into a new neighbourhood, its construction taken care of by developers who will purchase the plots.
The Winter Port is operated by the private company Slovenská Plavba a Prístavy, but the lands are owned by the state-owned joint-stock company Verejné Prístavy. It is the latter that will not extend the lease to the private operator and wants to move the port to Pálenisko.
For the sake of completeness, Pálenisko should not be confused with the recently announced HarbourPark complex, which the private company Win-Port Invest wants to build in the Vlčie hrdlo location not too far away. The project has been met with a wave of criticism, as the investment worth €1 billion assumes the felling of 90 hectares of forest. Critics also question the return on the investment, as well as its justification as it would significantly affect the nature.
2 What is the schedule of the plan?
According to the plan of the capital and the ministry, the area will be ready for transformation in 2029.
The process will start this December. The Bratislava Metropolitan Institute will develop a vision of the entire area in the next 15 months, followed by a feasibility study. Then, an international urban planning competition will be announced, which will determine the basic framework of how the area will look, what can be built and what it should offer to residents. After that, the zoning plan should be changed by the end of 2029.
According to Ráž, this is the maximum schedule and can be shorter.
