Dispute between mayors delays consolidation of Bucharest’s Unirii Square

The project targeting the complete reconstruction of the underground floor in the Unirii area in downtown Bucharest, namely the massive concrete slab that covers the busy Unirii Square, has triggered a dispute between the District 4 mayor Daniel Băluță and Bucharest's general mayor Nicuşor Dan. This, in turn, delays the work, which was supposed to start this week.

The disagreements started after the District 4 City Hall requested the General City Hall's emergency authorization of the works, as the structure is in an advanced state of decay. In his turn, the general mayor said that this type of work cannot be carried out in an emergency without complete documentation and without following all legal procedures, and that some approvals are still needed, as reported by Euronews Romania.

Also, in related news, mayor Dan said that the concrete floor of Unirii Square needs to be consolidated, but none of the documents justify the urgent issuance of the authorization, according to Hotnews.ro. In its turn, the District 4 City Hall quoted another technical expertise that classified certain parts of the Unirii floor as a "public danger" for road and pedestrian traffic, thus justifying the urgent need for consolidation works.

In this context, on Thursday, October 3, Daniel Băluță accused Nicuşor Dan of blocking the works and said he was giving up the project. He also said that he initiated the procedure to return the Unirii underground floor (Planșeul Unirii) back to the administration of the general mayor of Bucharest.

"Today, I should have informed you that we are starting the restoration work of the 100-year-old floor at Unirii, across the Dâmbovița river," District 4 mayor Băluță said in a post on social media.

He added: "However, taking note of the public and firm refusal of the general mayor to recognize the public danger that Planșeul Unirii represents today and his refusal to give the green light for the immediate start of the works required and requested by the institutions of the Romanian state concerned about the continuous and advanced degradation of the floor, despite the fact that the technical project is completed and the financing of the works is provided by the government of Romania, as mayor of District 4, I make this announcement: we have initiated the procedure for denouncing the Association Protocol concluded with Bucharest City Hall, through the Streets Administration, for the complete restoration of the Unirii underground flood."