Author Lorin Kadi | Citizens Channel | Tirana
Six multi-story towers are being built in the center of Tirana, within the territory that was once a protected historical area. Decision No. 582 of the Council of Ministers (at the request of the Municipality of Tirana), paved the way for the shrinking of the historical center of the city.
This intervention was criticized by the High State Control as not based on any real study, except for the interests of the construction business.
What are the projects that are concreting the center of Tirana?
Outline of the historical center of Tirana
- Tirana's rock - a 24-story tower in the shape of the bust of the national hero Skanderbeg is rising above the ruins of 100-year-old villas of "Broduej" street". The National Council of the Territory approved this project in 2018, giving the investor "ANA Shpk" the right to use 95% of the land for construction, a negative record in terms of development intensity.
- "New Hotel Tirana International" – A tower 33 floors which will be the continuation of the "Tirana Internacional" hotel, known as the 15th floor of Tirana. The National Council of the Territory approved this permit in 2017. Before the approval of the permit, the Municipality of Tirana expropriated the owners of 100-year-old houses in the area under the pretext of moving the electrical substation. The expropriated land was then given for construction to the company "GECI Shpk", which is building a hotel with 500 rooms.
- Book Building – It is a 4,5,11 and 21-storey building complex that is being built just 8 meters away Tirana Clock, the symbol building of the capital. KKT approved this permit in 2018, just a few months later a fire engulfed the land where the towers were to be erected, damaging the facilities located there.
- "Eyes of Tirana" - The 24-story tower erected in the flower garden next to the Bank of Albania received the "blessing" of KKT in 2017. The "Ideal Construction" company built 4,646 m2 of surface area in this tower without a permit. The Albanian government drafted a Special VKM that allowed the builders to escape criminal prosecution, while the violation of the law did not prevent the Municipality of Tirana from entering into a new agreement with the company, donating it over 1000 meters of public land in the center of Tirana, in exchange for 50% of the construction area.
- "Forever Green" - The tower started the works in February 2011. It took 25 years to complete the project of the 13-story tower after the bankruptcy of the company that started the works, it was completed by the company "AlbStar".
- "Tirana Mount" - A 185-meter tower will be erected in this green space, setting a new record for the tallest building in Tirana. The project of the Danish studio CEBRA was selected by a jury consisting of four architects, Prime Minister Edi Rama and Mayor Veliaj in October 2022 and received the approval of the National Council of the Territory in March of this year. The days that followed the siege of the building were accompanied by protests fromand the activists of the Joint Movement.
"A construction site without rules and criteria"
The center of Tirana is currently the area with the highest intensity of new constructions in Albania, the new towers are adding to the center a construction area of more than 256 thousand m2. Despite this, the central and local institutions have "forgotten" to approve the Detailed Local Plan for the center. On the official website ACPT there is no Detailed Local Plan (DPV) for the TR/1 area, although officially this territory is subject to the PDV.
The National Council of the Territory, led by Prime Minister Rama and the Municipality of Tirana are continuing to intensively approve new building permits. Millions of m2 of concrete have been added to Tirana in recent years, shrinking green spaces and turning the city into a money laundering paradise.
A 2020 report from the Global Initiative against Organized Crime noted that 1.6 billion euros of dirty money had been laundered through the Albanian real estate sector in the previous three years, with 60% of the project's financing coming from illegal sources.
A Co-Plan study in 2021 showed that the loss of natural surfaces within the Great Ring of Tirana amounted to 526,000 m2. Among other things, the institutions have taken care to eliminate the definition of "green space" from the law. In the Local General Plan TR 2030, the term green surface does not exist, only public space is defined there, which includes the green space.
Prime Minister Edi Rama responded to the criticism of money laundering during the presentation of the Tirana Multifuncional Center tower project, "they are bullshit, they are a great shame for those who do them".
