Little Cafes Facing Closure

Customers are shunning the Kafet e Volga area of Pristina, known for its alfresco coffee drinking, for a second summer as the municipality continues with road works along this once popular stretch.  

Businesses along Fehmi Agani Street told Balkan Insight that they may have to shut down because of the drop in visitors.  

The municipality started replacing the waterworks in spring last year and have still not replaced the pavement to date.

“People of course don’t want to drink coffee and have the never ending noise of the ongoing works,” said Festim Fanaj, owner of Etno Bar.

He added that if works don’t stop by the start of next month, he might go out of business, as the monthly taxes paid to the municipality and other monthly expenses cannot be covered by the current income.

Muhamet Gashi, spokesperson for the municipality, told Balkan Insight that the works will be completed by the end of the July.

“The water pipelines in Fehmi Agani Street and in UCK Street are in the final stages,” he said. “The project needed coordination so that both streets are finished at same time and the pavements and all the road works were completed at same time,” added Gashi.
But, owners of small coffee bars in Kafet e vogla area do not believe that the works will be completed this summer.

Fisnik Lajqi, owner of Track Cafe, said the works had drastically affected his business, particularly as this is the second summer, usually the most lucrative time of year.
“It is not fair to us to have these works ongoing for two years,” he said. “It is very rare that a street is dug up for three months, but this water pipeline took more than a year to be replaced, and then we had to wait another year for the UCK street to be completed so our pavements can be fixed too.”

Soho Street Bar, Gallery cafe, Kafja e Vogel, and five other small cafe bars told Balkan Insight that since the works have started, their businesses have suffered drastic financial losses.

Spokesman Gashi said that the works could not have been completed any faster.