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“Kutaisi Looks like a Big Hole”

April 14, 2008

Shorena Kakabadze, Kutaisi

Kutaisi residents have been worried how their city is being reconstructed without any plans. Builders of Sighnaghi try to return old glamour to Kutaisi to the present day. However, they are moving towards the objective very slowly. The specialists explain the reason is a lack of a defined plan of work for the reconstruction activities.

“The situation is both hard and ridiculous too. It is impossible to dig one and the same street up several times. That’s why it is important to have general plan and work to be completed based on that document. They purchased pipes, and intended to install that pipe for the length of two kilometers. They did not know that they city was engineered with water and sewage systems in the previous century. Now they should carry out only cleaning activities,” said Badri Melkadze, the architect.

He and his friends predicted about up-coming problems when the reconstruction works started and reminded the organizers of the activities to draw up a general plan. Besides that, it turned out that the Building Company “Tbilisi” (this company carried out similar activities in Sighnaghi too) took responsibility for everything and failed to seek out the opinions of local specialists.

“We cannot control the on-going reconstruction activities. The Building Company “Tbilisi” is leading everything up. However, there are several cases they agree with us,” said Mamuka Kobzonadze, the Main Architect of the city. Despite all their self-confidence, the first architect of Kutaisi could not answer our question why the reconstruction activities had been prolonged so much and that’s why the process was delayed what now is a half-destroyed Kutaisi.

“Nobody asks the opinion of local builders. We have such an impression that they have no idea what they are doing. The main point for them is to cut century-old plane-trees in the centre of the city and intend to plant young fir-trees instead. They are eager to change something but they do not care what is that change and how will be changed. Today, Kutaisi looks like a huge hole,” said the architects. 
 
Non-governmental organizations also protest unfinished reconstruction activities in Kutaisi. Zaza Kheladze, the director of the “Youth Scientific-Informational Association” explained: “The main reason for all of what is going-on is because non-professionals are involved in the process. You should agree with me that an engineer cannot be responsible for demographic issues. Like a person with bad toothache will never go to a shoe-maker to relieve pain.

The Regional Prosecutor supervises the on-going reconstruction activities but why nobody knows about it. When I became interested about several issues regarding the under-ground repair-works, I was advised to apply to the regional prosecutor to obtain information. I thought it was total nonsense to apply to him for the issue. It is beyond my understanding in knowing how or why he is involved with such activities. Are not there enough specialists in the field to employ?”

Reportedly, the regional prosecutor is also in charge of controlling the money allocated in addition to supervising the reconstruction. Mikheil Chogovadze, the regional prosecutor is the person who has authority to spend all 30 million GEL. The information is confirmed by the Main Architect of the City. Mamuka Kobzonadze explained: “Similar was the situation in Sighnaghi and it succeeded. Law enforcers seem to supervise such activities very effectively.  Workers should also be very careful. Mikheil Chogovadze is a kind of person who is keenly aware in many fields. He is a young man and has the talent of organizer. Thus, he was put in charge of the activities, as the central government decided.”

The regional governor refrains from making any comment on the situation. The workers employed on the reconstruction activities, who are publicly claimed to be working without reimbursement, refuse to comment either. “It is not necessary to speak about it. We do not need to have any extra troubles. I am eager to finish everything on time and return home safely and in one piece,” said one of the workers who preferred to remain anonymous. He seems to be more worried about the fact that he has to dig one and the same street for the third time rather than his salary.”

“Do you know what the real reason for such disorganized work is? It is uplanned and unorganized way of carrying out a program of work, which could have been introduced to all organizations with an underground network of communication. They dug the streets, and then employees from Telecommunication arrived and discovered serious mistakes in the completed work. Thus, they had to dug the streets again; after that people from “Electro Distribution Company” had problems…then the same happened about “Gas Distribution Company of Kutaisi” …. If they had invited all these people from the very beginning to the table and had asked their opinions, they would not have faced so many problems. The work should not have cost twice the price that would have been necessary. The issue about the hotel “Kutaisi” is also very interesting. Why the reconstruction of its building is delayed. Will they start reconstruction of the hotel when everything is finished? What is going on? Nobody wants to answer all these questions,” said Zaza Kheladze.

Another hot topic for consideration is cutting down of century-old plane trees in the main street of Kutaisi; they plan to plant fir-trees instead. Specialists explain the new trees will absorb wet and it is important for the city located on the embankment of the Rioni River. As it was found out there is no responsible person for deciding such activities. Local government does everything with the support of the central authority to make Kutaisi more attractive for investors. However, they do not care about details of how to reach their objectives.


“Current rehabilitation project might be too small for the activities that are going on in Guria-Samegrelo Regions. I mean President declared these two regions as a “Free Economic Zone.” Consequently, we will lose most investors. A person will not invest money in Kutaisi when he knows there is free economic zone with considerable tax discounts several kilometers away. I want to point out that the authority does not have a strategic direction,” said Kakha Gvantseladze, the chairperson of the Kutaisi Organization of the Association of Georgian Young Economists.

Alongside what has already been said and done, there are many others who have remarked that Kutaisi is “being built’ and not done in an organized way. Plans are drawn up with high expectations. However, the people, who have not seen anything better than dug-up streets, and can only dream that the work will be completed and the holes filled-in, at least one of these days.  They all have one common feeling-it is difficult to live in the city that has turned into one huge hole.

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