Residents of "Pavarësia" Street, in the Plazhit area of Durrës, are still awaiting a topography, which should determine whether the builders of the company "AKM Group" Shpk, are respecting the distance between the construction site and the building where they live.
The conflict between the builder and the residents began on March 27, when a perimeter fence was installed at the construction site, where a nine-story building is expected to be built.
The collapse of the dividing wall
Residents say their building was severely damaged by the 2019 earthquake, and the safety of their homes could be at risk if the foundations are damaged by excavation.
On March 31, when Citizens was first on site, a wall separated the construction site from the road, which residents say is only used by the existing building and is not a thoroughfare, as it is closed by the railway. They said the builder initially promised not to demolish the dividing wall.
"Those gentlemen came here, told us that the wall would not be destroyed, that the courtyard would not be touched. They protected us yesterday, when there was no one here, they destroyed it" - says Floresha Vehapi. As soon as the residents realized that the wall was being destroyed, they notified the Police and a part of this wall has remained intact.
Lawyer Edlira Peku, also a resident of the existing building, explains to Citizens that their property has been illegally violated. Meanwhile, the Territorial Development Agency confirms to Citizens that the road is owned by the state.
"From the verification of the fragment of the cadastral map, bordering on the eastern side with property 45/10, ZK 8518 is the property with No. 47/66, ZK 8518, of the type "Road", with the owner the Republic of Albania" - quotes AZHT.
Peku claims that the AZT refers to another property and the property 47/66 according to the "ASIG" portal (which presents geospatial data) is not the road in question, but a piece of land in the green block in Iliria (physically opposite the existing residents' building, but on the other side of the road).
Peku told Citizens that he will file a criminal complaint against the AZT for this misappropriation of assets.
"Failure to respect social distancing puts the lives of the residents of the building, which has 135 apartments, at risk. Also, an illegal attempt is being made to take over the common space of all residents. This constitutes a serious violation of the law and should not be allowed by the institutions," concluded Peku.
Waiting for the topographer
On April 8, residents were waiting for the police and the Durrës Territory Protection Inspectorate (IMT) at eight in the morning to find out if the demolition of the wall and the distances were in accordance with the construction permit, from which the new building must be 4.6 meters away.
The construction permit for the new facility was granted by the National Council for Territory and Water (KKTU) on June 25, 2025. It is being developed by the companies “AKM Group” and “Bega-07” sh.pk.
Citizens communicated with one of the builders, part of the Muçobega family, who said that the new building will comply with this distance and that they will not violate the existing road, and will even add green areas of the garden. While the residents on the other hand expressed that not only is he not respecting the distances but there will be garage entrances where they currently freely pass to enter the existing building.
"I will place piles 8 meters deep at the damaged wall for the safety of the residents, because I am the first to be interested in this issue," said the representative of the builders.
IMT employees who arrived on the scene around 11:30 said they could not estimate the distance with the naked eye and called a topographer from the Durrës municipality for measurements. Although more than 24 hours have passed, the topography has still not been presented.
"We bought this house with our own blood. We live here on pensions, we don't live on drugs and filth," said resident Floresha Vehapi in outrage.
Residents say they have tried several times to talk to the builder to find a common path, but not only have they not found a solution but they have also ended up at the police station.
The situation remains unclear until the completion of official verifications and field measurements by the relevant authorities. In the meantime, residents express their determination to pursue all legal avenues to protect their rights.
Read also:
"It endangers our building", residents in Durrës against the new 9-story project
He completed his master's studies in the department of Journalism and Communication Sciences at the University of Tirana. She has been reporting for more than four years in Citizens.al on issues of culture, urban development, feminism, etc. She is also a contributor to other local and foreign online media, and has worked in the editing of various materials. She is the author of the podcast "Pezull" on Citizens.al and is engaged as a coordinator of projects related to the empowerment of young journalists and migration issues.
