The City Hall of Sector 3 announced a tender for a 35-year water park concession in Pantelimon, in which it invested more than 30 million euros. The deadline for submitting proposals is February 16, 2023. To open the park, an investment of about 10 million euros is still needed, of which 1.5 million euros will be in the first year alone. In practice, the company/companies that will lease the park must make these investments and ensure the functioning of the complex.

The decision to transfer the park into a concession caused several controversies.

According to the announcement in the electronic public procurement system, the value of the concession contract is estimated at 1.4 billion lei (€280 million), and the concessionaire must provide the municipality with a royalty of at least €403,939.66 excluding VAT per year.

The management delegation agreement covers:

• Water Park Administration – Pantelimon Park
• Administration and operation of swimming pools
• Management and operation of catering establishments
• Management, operation and maintenance of the beach with deck and sand
• Administration of the organization of socio-cultural shows/events
• Management, operation and maintenance of the rink
• Management, operation and maintenance of access roads and open spaces
• District 3 Local Council approved the park concession on August 31, 2022. Then the deputies of the UDR demanded the removal of the project from the agenda, but the proposal was not approved.

Michaela Vaccaru, USR’s local councilor, wrote on the Facebook page that the concession would be made on dubious terms.

“The Negoita gang today witnessed a 35-year-old robbery procedure! The concession documentation of the Pantelimon water park has been approved. 27 million euros of buildings and structures and a large part of the park overlooking the lake will be transferred to a private firm. The conditions are sky-high: the company will pay the city hall at least 400,000 euros per year. At the same time, citizens will pay rates and interest on the loan that financed the investment,” Mihaela Vacaru explained.

As the City Hall of Sector 3 wants to give the park a concession

The water complex is not functioning now, the one who wins the tender must make more investments to put it into operation. In the first year, the investment will amount to 1.5 million euros, in the 2nd and 3rd years – 1.3 million euros, then by the end of the concession, the difference will be about 7 million euros, according to the draft decision by which the water park concession was approved.

The estimated value of the concession contract is about 1.4 billion lei (about 280 million euros). The minimum royalty level will be at least €403,939.66 excluding VAT per year.

“The tenderer will confirm the average worldwide turnover for the last 3 years of at least 41,512,750 lei, which is equivalent to 8.2 million euros. The tenderer will provide confirmation of the availability of cash, real resources, not encumbered by debts or credit lines for a period of 6 to 12 months, in the amount of 7,500,000 lei, which is equivalent to the previous investment of 1,500,000 euros,” the appendices of the draft decision say. agreed

In the technical and economic justification for the concession, price scenarios for access to the water complex were also drawn up:

• from 99 to 109 lei 24-hour access/adult and from 89 to 99 lei 24-hour access for pensioners, pupils, students.
• from 119 to 129 lei all day VIP/adult access;
• Students from Sector 3 will benefit from limited access to the aquatic complex, except for the VIP area, for two hours per month.

The estimated average capacity per day is 1,500 people, in the first 3 years of operation an average of 650 people per day, according to the feasibility study.

From the feasibility study conducted by SDK Solutions, it became clear that the best option is a concession:

• “From a financial point of view, the delegation of the management of the management and operation of the Pantelimon water complex through the concession agreement will contribute to the efficiency of the provision of these services, as it is the result of financial analysis and technical and economic indicators. associated with each activity.
• In addition, the 3rd Sector of the Municipality of Bucharest should no longer use funds from the local budget to make investments for operational activities and for operational costs related to the implementation of activities, as this will be the full responsibility of the delegated authority. economic operator.
• After the end of the contract on the delegation of management by way of concession, the grantor of Sector 3 of the Municipality of Bucharest is left with the investments made by the operator.
• Another important argument is that the delegation of management through the concession will bring income to the local budget not only due to collected royalties, but also due to fees and taxes collected from the concessionaire business entity and from end consumers.
• The duration of the recommended concession contract is 35 years, with the possibility of an extension for 1 year,” says the conclusion of the TEO.

About the aqua complex

The City Hall of Sector 3 built a water park and an amusement park in Pantelimon Park, the initial cost of the works was estimated at approximately 112 million lei. The project was approved by District 3 Local Council in 2018 when work began.

The deadline for the completion of the works was November 2019, but it was postponed to April 2020, when the entire complex was supposed to be ready.

In August 2019, work in this park caused a real scandal after the City Hall of the 3rd sector, through the company “Algorithm Constructions S3”, took dozens of dump trucks of earth from the underground parking lot to the building. Decebalus kept them in the Pantelimon Park, on the border with the Ketzelou station. Mayor Robert Negojce said at the time that the land was being reserved for the development of the hill for the derdeluş and that the necessary permits were in place for the work.

In April 2020, the local council of district 3, at the request of the mayor’s office, allocated 15 million lei for the construction of an ice rink in Pantelimon Park, on the roof of one of the water park buildings, as well as for the purchase of air conditioning units. Also, the deadline for completing the water park was postponed by 1 year – until April 2021. Then the city hall asked to extend the deadline until the end of 2022.

In July 2022, the city council approved a new price increase for the modernization of Pantelimon Park and the Aqua Complex from 142 million lei to 162 million lei. In 2018, when the project started, the price was 112 million lei.

The works are carried out by the company Sector 3 of the City Hall – AS3- Administrare Străzi S3.