The dispute between District 4 mayor Daniel Băluță and Bucharest's general mayor Nicuşor Dan over the reconstruction of the underground floor in the Unirii area in downtown Bucharest, namely the massive concrete slab that covers the busy Unirii Square, led to a major scandal on Monday, October 14. The conflict was fuelled by disagreements over construction permits and ownership rights, putting the project on hold again.

The conflict started after 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. General mayor Dan said he could not issue an emergency permit without the complete documentation and without following all legal procedures. Thus, in early October, District 4 mayor Băluță accused Nicuşor Dan of blocking the works and said he was giving up the project. 

On Monday morning, however, Daniel Băluță announced that he opened the construction site in Unirii Square based on an authorization issued by the City Hall of District 3, led by Robert Negoiță. He once again stated that the work needs to start as soon as possible, as certain parts of the Unirii floor have been classified as a "public danger" for road and pedestrian traffic.

In response, Nicuşor Dan went to the Unirii area to demand the dismantling of the construction site, as he claimed ownership rights belong to the General City Hall. He also said that the District 3 City Hall cannot issue a building permit in the Unirii area, as this section is not under its administration, according to Digi24.

Dan was stopped by the Local Police of District 4, however, and this caused a scandal between the general mayor's team and District 4 representatives, including local, municipal, and national police forces.

On Monday evening, Nicușor Dan returned to Unirii Square with a mayor's order to dismantle the construction site. Again, police officers and Gendarmerie were also called to the scene, where a bulldozer was brought to put down the fences surrounding the construction site. The District 4 Local Police made a shield in front of the bulldozer to prevent the demolition, according to Hotnews.ro. Two employees complained that they were injured, and the police announced that they had opened a criminal case.

The entire conflict also triggered reactions from the two partners of the ruling coalition, namely prime minister and Social Democrat (PSD) leader Marcel Ciolacu and Liberal (PNL) leader Nicolae Ciucă. The prime minister asked the two mayors to resume the dialogue, stating, "justice is not done with the bulldozer." On the other hand, Ciucă asked the PSD to respect the attributions of Bucharest's general mayor and accused Băluță of having intervened by force.

Later on Monday, as the scandal kept escalating in the downtown Unirii area, District 4 mayor Băluță announced that he ordered the workers to leave the site. On Tuesday morning, the fences delimiting the construction site, which had been installed by order of the mayor, Daniel Băluță, were removed from Unirii Park, Hotnews.ro reported.

A few years ago, the District 4 City Hall and the General City Hall of Bucharest signed a protocol that put the underground floor of Unirii Square under the administration of the District 4 City Hall and gave it the right to start the consolidation works, according to Euronews Romania. The project aims to replace the existing structure under a financing contract worth some RON 750 million.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea)