"The dismantling of the Soviet Army Monument must continue, and the Sofia Municipal Council (SOC) and the mayor of Sofia must proceed with the implementation of the decision to organize an international competition for a comprehensive understanding of the space in the Prince's Garden", said the municipal councilor from the “Blue Sofia“ group Vili Lilkov at a briefing before the SOC meeting.
According to him, there have been consistent decisions of the SOC since 2012, which provide for the organization of a competition with international participation for the future of the space, and not only for the location of the monument itself. Lilkov recalled that the chief architect was then assigned to organize the competition and noted that the assignment for it is still available on the website of the Sofia Development Association.
According to him, the problem is that decisions are periodically made that are subsequently not implemented by the mayoral administration. He stressed that the entire Prince's Garden should be considered as a whole, as it is a monument of garden and park art.
“Only a competition of specialists can say what should be there in the future“, said Lilkov.
According to him, the current state of the space is unacceptable and the most valuable central spaces of Sofia cannot be turned into a “ordinary fair“.
He pointed out that a similar trend is observed in other key places in the capital, including around the National Palace of Culture, where temporary markets and events are organized, which, in his opinion, do not correspond to the importance of these spaces.
Lilkov appealed to the mayor of Sofia to begin implementing the decisions of the Municipal Council related to the development of the Prince's Garden. “This is one of the most expensive and communicative urban spaces in Sofia, with a rich European history. "We have now turned it into a space of kitsch and fairground culture," he said.