The current text has been floating around for several years, I have spoken a little in recent months (on Facebook), but now the story with the sculpture group “Ardelsk School” has filled the glass to the brim.

We have a beautiful, wonderful city, a treasure, a treasure city – and this is not just a beautiful metaphor, but a reality. This is a city that I love, that I am proud of and that I would not leave. I really wouldn’t go! It’s a city that has it all: history – city – historic sites – ethnic and religious diversity – rich cultural life – six of the best universities in the country (a university city!) – libraries and museums full of treasures – our city is crossed by a beautiful river with potential – we have football, basketball and other sports teams – we have festivals – we have economic life – we have prosperity – we have an airport of regional and international importance – we are visited by (many) foreigners, hundreds of ours study in universities foreign students – we have beautiful landscapes. Cluj is blessed by many, very many. Of course, there is still a lot of room for improvement, for example in terms of green spaces, infrastructure and mobility, we are (still) bad.

But it is not the point of this article to list what is good and what is not.

We have an administrative history that after 1990 strongly marked the life of our city, it was the Funar era with its madness and immobility, now we live for many years in the Bok era, which brought real changes to Cluj after the Nightmare funeral, our city progressed well, it became cleaner, more modern, better trolleys, electric buses, dedicated public transport lanes (there is room for better), cycle paths (the same), shopping centers and supermarkets, good local governance was felt on the street and we all felt it at home. We feel them even now, but something seems to be wrong.

There are a few things that do not work, I will mention here the historical Cluj, Cluj, which lives on history and historical monuments. I never had the impression that the municipality is very careful – as I would like – to history and historical monuments. Of course, at the declarative level, history takes a leading position, it’s nice to brag about it, but it remains somewhere there… hanging in the air. Because the reality on the ground is different. The urban landscape of Cluj in the last 5-10 years has undergone a huge transformation, it is being built like hell, which is not a problem, but when it comes to preserving the history, the historical specificity of the street, we say: “Sir, come on, it’s only this building, as far as it is can spoil the landscape?, can’t you see that we preserve the specificity”… we make and repair… and after a few years and after several more construction sites, the street is no longer recognizable. What I’m saying here is not vital, it’s not life and death, it’s just that at some point you draw the line and find you no longer recognize your street… the city.

And I don’t want to give examples, so as not to lose the idea of ​​this article, and yet, so as not to be accused of being vague or falling into the real estate project x or y, I will name some streets: Avram Janku street, Innocentie Miku street (of course, on Kuti with Potaissa), Fulicea Street, Babesh Street, Gheorghe Sintsai Street, Decebal and Traian Streets and many others.

The pedestrianized city center is very good, it is one of the best long-term initiatives of the current municipal administration, many streets have come to life, for example Museului square and nearby streets, Innocenti Miku street and others. These pedestrian streets are one of the biggest attractions for Cluj residents and visitors who want to stroll or sit on the terrace.

Work is currently underway on x streets, which are being restored. So far, nothing bad, only there are too many streets under construction, which have been “under construction” for a year and the progress on site is minimal. Companies winning auctions (do not use the adjective “subscription”) rush to open construction sites on many streets and then do not have the opportunity to work everywhere. Examples can be seen with the naked eye (and foot) by those who walk through the center every day. These streets are not closed to pedestrians, and they choose to bathe in mud among moving bulldozers and trucks (for example, two segments of Bolyai Street, Iuliu Maniu Street). The street under construction is being closed, Mr. Mayor, so that pedestrians cannot pass, because there can be very serious accidents. But measures will be taken, as here, when something serious happens. (My fellow citizens of Mănăștur will be able to add here the endless construction site of the desired breakthrough in the Brewery / Platinia area).

On Kogălniceanu street you can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Regarding the reconstruction of the streets, there are two remarks. 1) cars. where are the cars? I don’t anymore, and that’s good. But where are the cars? Where to park for those who really need a car? (I am not one of them, I have been cycling around Cluj for 20 years). Dozens of parking spaces, maybe a hundred, are disappearing from Universitet, Kogelničianu and Emmanuel de Martonne streets. Someone will learn to ride in public transport, as our mayor tells us all the time, but who does transport not help? What is happening to them?

There was talk about an underground parking lot on Kogelničianu Street, which would be a great solution for what I’m writing about here. But for reasons of economy and to avoid trouble (including with historians and archaeologists), the municipality thought it best to forget about this very good idea. What about other underground parking lots? The town hall parking lot and the parking lot in the Mihai Vityazul hall will not be enough for the central part, as well as the private one being built on Avram Janka Street.

2) concreting. I feel that the newly renovated streets are becoming huge slabs of concrete, where the former greenery has been replaced by (perhaps) all kinds of trees. Trees are not everything, green spaces are more than individual trees. But what I really don’t like is concreting.

And speaking of concrete… watch Somesh. I was very happy in previous years when they started talking about rehabilitating the banks of Somesh, improving them and so on. And so on. It started in the Hryhorescu district. Perfectly. But every time I take the tram to Menestur, I feel sick when I look at the banks of our Somes, which instead of making it valuable and making friends with the people of Cluj, instead of letting the people of Cluj go, jog or to ride a bike near the water we tie Someș with concrete chains. Continue reading the article on Contributors.ro