site.btaSave Sofia Leader Slams Mladost Property Deal as Corrupt

Spasi Sofia Chair Boris Bonev told journalists ahead of a session of the Sofia Municipal Council that a report concerning properties in Sofia’s Mladost district, envisaging the construction of a 22-storey building with nearly 60,000 sq m of gross floor area, was “among the most scandalous and corrupt decisions”.

According to him, the case concerns one of the largest corruption deals being pushed through “quietly and smoothly”, despite being entirely against the public interest. Bonev stressed that the proposal would allow a 22-storey building to rise at one of the busiest intersections in the district, enabling nearly 60,000 sq m of built-up area.

“These are 22 storeys of corruption that will be visible from all over Sofia and will certainly be detested by the residents of Mladost,” Bonev said. He stressed that people in the district have long voted for politicians who promise to curb overdevelopment, not for those who encourage it.

He added that Spasi Sofia municipal councillor and architect Rositsa Nikolova has repeatedly presented arguments in committee as to why the report should be postponed or rejected, but professional reasoning is hard to hear when a political agreement has already been reached.

Nikolova pointed out that the Sofia Municipality owns 92% of the property, while the private owner holds just 8%. In her view, such a ratio logically means the municipality should set the rules and conditions for future development.

Bonev also criticized political forces he believes will support the proposal, as well as Sofia Mayor Vassil Terziev for failing to take a public stance on the issue.

He further said that the submitted report effectively repeats, without changes, a proposal from the previous term introduced by GERB and the then mayor of Mladost. At the time, even with GERB holding a full majority, the report was withdrawn following public pressure and strong arguments against it.

“Today, the chaos in governance allows everyone to do as they please, thinking it’s their last chance, and accordingly to steal as if for the last time,” Bonev said.