How many abandoned buildings in Bucharest’s Old Town?

Although the Old Town is one of the main tourist attractions in Bucharest, the view it offers is not always a good one as several buildings in this area are in a very bad shape. An inventory carried out by journalists from local publication Hotnews.ro found 27 abandoned buildings in the Old Town. The homeless have found shelter in these places, made to look even worse by piles of garbage. Besides the unsightly appearance, what’s even more important is that the plaster can fall off these buildings at any time, and somebody could get injured. Some of these buildings are privately owned, some are public, and others have mixed ownership, according to Hotnews.ro. Under the law, the owners are compelled to take care of these buildings. If they don’t have the money to keep them in good shape, as it can be quite costly, they can sell them. The Ministry of Culture and the Bucharest City Hall can exercise the right of preemption to buy the buildings. This means that the two institutions are asked before other buyers if they want to take over the building, in case they want to save a derelict monument and revamp it. 40 years after the great earthquake of 1977, Bucharest is not prepared to withstand a similar event Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com