Timing of Building Frenzy in Macedonian Capital Questioned

Key arteries leading to and out of the Macedonian capital are blocked by construction workers and machinery laying asphalt and rebuilt sidewalks.

The massive overhaul of the city centre, which started in April, has prompted complaints that the projects are timed for completion just before the June 5 general election - boosting the ratings of the ruling VMRO-DPMNE party.

The office of Skopje City Mayor, Koce Trajanovski, denies that the campaign is linked to the date of the elections.

Trajanovski, a member of VMRO-DPMNE, led by Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, said the works were long planned "and these activities are part of the budget adopted in October 2010” - before anyone knew the date of the early elections.

The city hall argues that spring is a normal period to start major construction activities and if they had waited for the elections to be over, the mess during the summer might have been even worse. They urge people to be patient for another month or two.

But some city workers are angry. “It is impossible to drive a car through the centre,” one commuter told Balkan Insight. He said he had to drive through bumpy streets that damaged his car and wait in long lines of traffic.

“They should not have started the whole thing at once but should have reconstructed one street at a time," another driver said. "But the elections are coming and they want to create the illusion that something is being done".

Some commuters complain of a slow tempo of work, saying streets are being left unasphalted for an unnecessarily long time.

Pointing a finger at a cloud of dust hovering above the Krste Misirkov Boulevard, Verka Smileva said:  “I've been forced to breath this for almost two weeks now because I live here. Why can't they be speedier?”

Following the announcement of the elections, construction works have intensified also on the sites that form part of a grand government revamp of the capital, “Skopje 2014”.

The municipality of Centar last week promoted four new monuments that are part of the plan. The Centar district is getting most of the government money for the project.

The plan, launched in 2010, envisages at least 15 buildings and more than 20 large-scale monuments in the central area, including theatres, concert halls, museums, a triumphal arch and an obelisk, all drawing inspiration from the architectural styles of Classical Antiquity.
Construction work is well ahead on the grand triumphal arch near the parliament building. Workers are also already decorating with white marble 12-metre-high fountain that will serve as a base for a giant statue of the ancient warrior king Alexander the Great. Altogether, the statue will be over 22 metres tall.

The façade and interior of the Museum of the Macedonian Struggle are also almost ready. It is envisaged that it will host wax replicas of national heroes and historical figures.

Jovica Ackovski, the spokesperson for the municipality of Centar, also run by VMRO-DPMNE, declined to comment on whether the completion of the monuments had been timed to coincide with the elections.

“The construction works are going well and you will be informed about future promotions in due time,” he said.

The plan has been criticized by opposition parties and by architects and urban planers as a waste of money and effort.

But supporters say it will give Skopje a much-needed facelift and will make it look more like a regular European capital city.