site.btaPeople Affected by Housing Demolition in Sofia’s Zaharna Fabrika Borough Unwelcome in Lyulin

Residents of the Lyulin housing estate in Sofia held a demonstration on Wednesday to express their reluctance to accept people from the Zaharna Fabrika Borough who may be moved to their own area. Demolition of illegal houses in Zaharna Fabrika has been on for a couple of days now, and the authorities have pledged that alternative housing will be provided for all affected families.

The protesters have learned of plans for people from Zaharna Fabrika to be relocated to the Temporary Accommodation Centre in Lyulin’s Building 464, which is considered practically unlivable. The demonstrators held a brief street blockade. Police maintained security in the area of the peaceful protest.

Meanwhile, Ilinden Borough Mayor Emil Branchevski, who had dismissed fears that Zaharna Fabrika residents would be moved to Botunets (in his borough), said on Wednesday that six families who lost their homes in the demolition process were moved to municipal-owned homes in Ilinden.

According to Branchevski, nine people are now in the Temporary Accommodation Centre in Zaharna Fabrika, a family were taken to a children’s protection home, two people are in healthcare establishments, and a few older individuals were moved to social care homes for the elderly. Still others have rented homes at market rates, which they found with the assistance of the municipal government.

Lyulin Borough Mayor Georgi Todorov talked with the protesters. He explained to journalists that people in Lyulin worry that the Temporary Accommodation Centre in Building 464 offers poor conditions and is not functioning properly. “We are struggling to provide the necessary level of safety in the building, and we think that the problem will be exacerbated if people from illegal houses are allowed to move in,” Todorov said.

He accused Emil Branchevski, the Ilinden Mayor, of an “unfair” decision which was not coordinated with anyone.