Tbilisi City Hall has announced that the territory of former hippodrome in Tbilisi is to be transformed into a public park. Our analysis of the project documentation reveals that current construction work is being carried out with major violations of the law. More specifically, despite a clear legal guidance that requires it, there is no detailed project of the new park, nor has the Architecture Service of the Tbilisi City Hall issued a permit. It is rather unfortunate that neither public organizations, nor the community who regularly uses the former hippodrome for leisure and recreational purposes, have been able to participate in the planning and implementation stages of the project. Social Justice Center has appealed to Tbilisi City Court in order to prevent illegal work on the premises.

On 15 July, 2021, the Social Justice Center requested documentation pertaining to the construction of a “Central Park” on the territory of the former hippodrome from the Tbilisi City Hall. In their response, also backed up by a statement made by the Mayor of Tbilisi, local authorities stated that the Cartu Foundation has been carrying out construction works on a municipality-owned land based on a draft project rather than a detailed plan of the park. Nor has there been an agreement with the Architecture Service of the City Hall which represents a major breach of existing legislation.

The Georgian Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture is to immediately terminate works underway in the territory of the park since, according to the Environmental Impact Assessment Code, it is subject to a screening process, which has not been undertaken. In October 2020, Green Alternative called on the Ministry to take respective measures but to no avail. Tbilisi Mayor’s office bears the duty to prevent illegal construction in the territory of the former hippodrome. As a reminder, on 6 October 2020, Mayor of Tbilisi broke the news concerning the planned construction of a ‘central park’ on the territory of the former hippodrome, with total area of 28 ha. A concept of the park released to the public by the Mayor’s Office suggests that both the landscape as well as the function of the territory will undergo significant changes. Alarmingly, there is a risk of a significant portion of the natural green cover being replaced with constructions, and parking lots.

Due to deregulated and untransparent practices, non-democratic municipal administration and unplanned constructions, numerous green and public spaces both in Tbilisi and other Georgian cities face the risk of being privatized, fragmentated and shrunk. The ownership of the hippodrome has changed many hands every subsequent owner remained formally obligated to construct a recreational space on the territory. However, this obligation remains unfulfilled.

The Social Justice Center believes that the future of the hippodrome must be shaped by means of an open, transparent, and participatory format, and any deliberation around a specific project must be based on such a format. Not only is the Mayor’s Office legally obliged to proceed in this manner, but it is also a commonly held view that the best way to ensure accessibility of the territory, and preserve its cultural and social functions, is to engage with those who have been using and taking care of the territory over the course of many years. Considering a long record of caring for the space with its historical, social and cultural legacy, it is rather unfortunate that the community of care-takers has been shunned and excluded from the project planning process.

Share