Checks on illegal construction on Bulgaria’s coast find numerous violations – prosecutors
Over two days, inspections regarding the legality of construction and operation of sites on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coasts found numerous violations, including illegal restriction of access to the beach, the Prosecutor’s Office said on July 22.
The inspections were carried out on July 20 and 21 under the direction of the deputy of the chief prosecutor at the Supreme Administrative Prosecutor’s office and involved a supervising prosecutor from that office, as well as officials from the construction control directorate and the municipality and maritime administration of Bourgas.
Though not referred to in the statement by the Prosecutor’s Office, the checks followed years of complaints in social media and in public protests about illegal construction, and more recently, the well-publicised incident in which Democratic Bulgaria leader Hristo Ivanov sought access to a public beach near the seaside mansion of Movement for Rights and Freedoms honorary president Ahmed Dogan – an incident that contributed to the current series of protests against the government and the prosecutor-general.
The statement said that at the Alepu Village site near Sozopol, the construction of a “retaining wall” deviated from the construction documents.
The change had been made during construction and did not correspond to the approved investment project. The Supreme Administrative Prosecution had told the construction control directorate to take up the matter under the Spatial Development Act.
An inspection in the Arkutino area found that no construction work was currently being carried out near the coastline. The construction site was not fenced and there was no securing of the concrete structure, construction of which had been suspended in 1992. The mayor of Sozopol was told to take action under the Spatial Development Act to secure the site.
In the Budjaka area, large fences and buildings restricted access to the coastal rocks. It was possible to reach the sea only via a narrow path, which could be dangerous to people using it. Prosecutors have opened a dossier on the matter, the statement said.
In Rosenets Park (site of the Dogan seaside mansion events), it was found that a temporary construction fence barred free access to the coastline.
This fence is already rather well-known, having appeared in media reports and on social network streaming about attempts by Ivanov and others to reach the beach.
The statement said that the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works does not have an approved investment project for the construction of a port site, nor does it have an approved investment project for the construction of a two-storey building in the immediate vicinity of the coastal strip.
The check on the Venid Eco Village Complex in Sveti Vlas found that currently nothing was being done regarding the construction of residential buildings and a hotel, against the background of the general construction ban that is in effect until October 1.
The mayor of Nessebur was told to issue an explicit order regarding the site pending a ruling by the Administrative Court in Bourgas on building permits issued for a forest area.
The Prosecutor’s Office said that inspections under the direction of the Supreme Administrative Prosecutor’s Office regarding illegal construction on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast would continue.
(Photos:
Prosecutor’s Office)
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