On Wednesday, the project of allocating 700 thousand square meters of Pantovčak Forest to the City of Zagreb, and thus for the use of citizens, was presented at the Office of the President of the Republic, and Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović acknowledged that she did not fulfill her pre-election promise regarding the relocation of the Office, but also assessed that through her work she has fulfilled all the reasons for which she wanted to move it.
– You are right. Simply, at that time I could not imagine that the state could not provide an appropriate replacement facility for the seat of the Office of the President. So, that has not been fulfilled, Grabar-Kitarović replied to a journalist’s question whether today’s presentation is an acknowledgment that she did not fulfill her pre-election promise and that she made a mistake.
I admit my mistake, said the president, and then recalled the motives that led her to announce the relocation of the Office, which “should not be understood as relativizing the acknowledgment,” and for which she believes she has fulfilled through her work.
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The first reason was her desire to be closer to the citizens, which she assesses she has succeeded in through relocating her Office to the seats of the counties.
The second reason was cost reduction, which she emphasizes has also been achieved as the Office’s costs have been reduced by 10 percent annually (last year’s execution was 35 million kuna, from a planned 41 million kuna). After Zagreb receives the forest, she added, those costs will be further reduced.
The number of officials has also been reduced, which was the third reason for her announcement of the relocation of the Office. This has been fulfilled as their number has been effectively halved, and the total number of employees in the Office has also been reduced, without anyone being laid off, the president stated.
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The fourth reason was the desire to open Pantovčak to the citizens, which is being realized through this project, the president adds, noting that the number of members of the Honorary Protection Battalion who secure her Office has also been reduced.
According to the elaboration that needs to be made, the complex of the President’s Office would be reduced to 250 thousand square meters, while the remaining 700 thousand square meters will be returned to the management of the Ministry of State Property, or will be allocated to the City of Zagreb for 50 years by contract.
The head of the President’s Office, Anamarija Kirinić, reminded of the timeline of events that resulted in today’s presentation, which marks the completion of the optimization process of the President’s Office complex. From the decision to initiate the procedure for determining the seat of the Office, the appointment of a Commission to prepare a professional report on the spatial needs of the Office based on which it was determined that the state does not have any property that would meet the necessary criteria, to the conclusion of the Commission to retain the seat of the Office at the current location.
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After that, work continued on further optimizing the complex, Kirinić said, and the Ministry of State Property will prepare a parceling elaboration that will exclude part of the properties that are not necessary for the normal functioning of the President’s Office.
The Minister of State Property, Goran Marić, emphasizes that this project will reduce the scope of space usage for the needs of the President’s Office by almost three-quarters.
– The Ministry, in cooperation with the City of Zagreb, will allocate 700 thousand square meters for the needs of the Pantovčak Nature Park by the end of the year, and by then a proposal for the parceling elaboration and a project for a fence that will delineate the land of the nature park and the land of the Office will be prepared, he said.
Bandić: It will be the most beautiful forest-park in Europe
Expressing satisfaction with the solution, Zagreb Mayor Milan Bandić stated that it will again “fall to him to work.” “This forest needs to be arranged. Let’s get to work. As soon as we get the paper, we will arrange the park,” he said, asserting that it will be the most beautiful forest-park in Europe.
The president’s wish is for the park to be opened to citizens by the end of the year, for Advent, while the more cautious Zagreb mayor says that the most realistic expectation is that the space will be opened at the beginning of spring.
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Citizens will be able to use this space for free, both confirmed, and Bandić commented, “Well, we can’t charge for everything.” It is, the president emphasizes, a new green heart in the city of Zagreb given for the use of citizens.
– I believe that this openness to citizens, which I advocate so much, and I hope I demonstrate with my part, is realized by giving the Pantovčak forest park for public use, she conveyed.
