The Municipality of Oradea is on everyone’s lips, when it comes to being given a positive example of local public administration in Romania. Over the last ten years, local public administration has attracted 620 million euros worth investments only from non-reimbursable projects to transform the city into a jewel of Romania.
The Municipality of Oradea has undergone an amazing transformation in a period of 10 years. There is no wonder recipe, but it did matter. You must have a leader – Mayor Ilie Bolojan – mindful of what is needed in the city and ready to take responsibility of the decisions he has taken.
You discover smartly administered money in every corner of the city. The merit of attracting European funds belongs to the Directorate for Management of International Financial Projects (DMPFI), established ten years ago, through which Oradea City Hall managed to win several projects with non-reimbursable financing, meant to rehabilitate a series of tourist and architectural objectives, but also projects leading to the development of the city’s infrastructure – road, business, transport, medical or educational. Several projects have been finalized, others are in progress and others are in the pre-financing phase.
If we were to mention the finalized projects that were aimed at the tourist capitalization of the city, they would be: Rehabilitation, refurbishment and inclusion into the tourist circuit of the Oradea Fortress – “Oradea Fortress, European multicultural and multi-denominational center”, Rehabilitation and modernization of the Temporary Accommodation Centers in Oradea, Promotion of religious tourism by valorizing the Jewish community heritage in Oradea-Debrecen (ZION Synagogue), Bicycle trail between Oradea and Berettyoujfalu (Hungary) and Development of natural habitats of protected tree species and spontaneous flora on the hill of Ciuperca (Mushroom) in Oradea and in the Korosszegapati area of Hajdu Bihar County.
In what the development of the business environment concerns, the Oradea City Hall has finalized the project “Creating a business infrastructure in Oradea and providing public utilities to the Eurobusiness I Oradea Industrial Park”.
Tourism and business cannot be developed if there is no friendly road infrastructure for the tourists, business people and residents.
In this respect, the Oradea City Hall has implemented the projects “Construction of uneven passages between the Oradea Beltway (Ogorului Street) and the National Road DN 76 – Deva, respectively between the Oradea City Beltway (Ogorului Street / Calea Sântandreiului Street) and National Road DN 79 Arad-Oradea”, as well as “Decongesting the road traffic and improving the population mobility on the Oradea-Biharkeresztes cross-border corridor”.
Two other projects carried out by the City Hall aimed at the diversification of the thermal energy sources, respectively the energy efficiency of the district heating system. In this respect, two projects were implemented: “Use of geothermal energy for the production of thermal agent for the thermal point PT 902 heat consumers with used geothermal water reinjection in the deposit”, respectively “Rehabilitation of the urban heating system in the Municipality of Oradea for the period 2009 – 2028 in order to comply with the environmental legislation and increasing energy efficiency”.
12 implemented projects
No less than 12 projects are currently being implemented in the Municipality of Oradea. They target various areas of increasing the energy efficiency of public buildings, such as the projects “Increasing the energy performance of hospitals in Oradea” or “Increasing the energy efficiency of buildings related to high schools, general schools and kindergartens in the Municipality of Oradea”, up to the development of public transport and urban mobility, such as the projects “Modernization of the tram park in the Municipality of Oradea”, “Creating pedestrian trails and improving public transport of people in the central area of the Municipality of Oradea”, “Development and prioritization of passengers’ transportation in the Municipality of Oradea”, “Sustainable urban mobility corridor in Emanuil Gojdu – Vasile Alecsandri Square, Oradea”, “Corridor of sustainable urban mobility in Emanuil Gojdu Square – Fortress Square, Oradea” or “City Walk: energy responsibility of localities by developing trafficable cities for pedestrians in the Danube Region”.
Additionally, the City Hall of the Municipality of Oradea carries on the ambitious projects aiming at the capitalization of the local architectural heritage. In order to reach this objective, the following projects are being implemented: “Restoration of Darvas House – La Roche in order to capitalize on Secession cultural heritage”, “Restoration, preservation and integration in the cultural circuit of the Objective: Museum of Freemasonry in Oradea”, “Rehabilitation, restoration and refunction of the Oradea Fortress’ walls for its inclusion into the tourist circuit Oradea Fortress – European Multicultural and Multi-denominational Center – Stage III. Consolidation and restoration of the walls of the of Ciunt and Bethlen Bastions, respectively of the north and west walls”.
The Directorate for Management of International Financial Projects (DMPFI) team has also been mindful of population dynamics and the inhabitants’ needs, whose number has exceeded 220,000 in the past 10 years, as well as of labor market requirements and the needs of local companies, investing in the educational infrastructure of the city. Currently, two projects are being carried out for this purpose, namely: “Extending nurseries and kindergartens, equipping the educational infrastructure for early, ante-pre-school and pre-school education in the Municipality of Oradea; Construction of the nursery and kindergarten in Industrial Park 1, equipped with the educational infrastructure for early, ante-pre-school and pre-school education in the Municipality of Oradea”, respectively “Rehabilitation, modernization, equipping the educational infrastructure for vocational and technical education”.
In 2018 – other 14 elaborated and submitted projects
Last year, the City Hall of the Municipality of Oradea, through the Directorate for Management of International Financial Projects (DMPFI), elaborated and submitted 14 projects with European financing, in order to carry on the strategic development of the city from the economic, medical, social, cultural, etc. points of view.Taking them separately, for the economic development, the City Hall of the Municipality of Oradea also counts on the project “Promoting Creative Entrepreneurship by Developing Business Incubator: Cresc Oradea Mare/Growing Great Oradea”, elaborated and submitted for financing last year.
Then, the Municipality of Oradea continues to focus on increasing the quality of medical services for inhabitants and tourists on holiday in the city, and three European-funded projects have been submitted: “Improvement of cross-border medical services by upgrading medical equipment at Dr. Dr. Gavril Curteanu Hospital in Oradea and the Békés County Central Hospital”, “Extending Outpatient body B Emergency Clinical County Hospital Oradea – Stage I and Stage II”, and “Integrated project for sustainable development in the mountainous area of Bihor County, improvement of the access and development of health services in case of medical interventions in emergency situations”.
In the field of energy and in order to increase the energy efficiency, Oradea City Hall has drafted and submitted two projects, namely: “Thermal rehabilitation of apartment blocks in order to increase energy efficiency in the Municipality of Oradea” and “Capitalization of geothermal energy in association with heat pumps, for the production of thermal agent for heating and hot water in certain neighborhoods in Oradea”.
In order to develop an ecological public transport, to improve urban mobility and to increase the air quality in the municipality, the City Hall has drafted and submitted four projects according to these objectives: “Polycentric mobility in the Municipality of Oradea – Magnolia, Cazaban, Nufărul corridor”, “Increasing urban mobility in Nufărul – Cantemir area”, “Arrangement of green corridors in the Municipality of Oradea” and “Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in transports, by installing recharging stations for electric vehicles in the Municipality of Oradea”.
Certainly, the educational infrastructure has not been forgotten, with the arguments already outlined above, so that four projects respond to the needs of the inhabitants and companies in the municipality: “Building a Day Care Center for children from marginalized communities in the Municipality of Oradea”, ”Building New Kindergartens with equipment for the educational infrastructure for the early, ante-pre-school and pre-school education in the Municipality of Oradea”, “Rehabilitation, modernization, equipping the educational infrastructure for vocational and technical education and lifelong learning in the Mihai Viteazul Technical College in Oradea” and “Rehabilitation of facades and interior design, rehabilitation of sanitary and electrical installations Secondary School no. 11”.
(From the special edition of TB 86 – „ENJOY TRANSYLVANIA!” – May/June 2019)
