Results of meeting of the City Council in December

Settlement of land under the Vajnory football pitch

The football pitch in Vajnory is irreplaceable for the residents of the city district since it is a site for various sporting events. At present, it is actively used by several football teams along with, of course, the general public. The Vajnory football club has one of the largest bases of footballers in Slovakia; it is dedicated to the future generations of footballers, and some 300 children take part in sports there. However, due to disputes over the lease of the land on which the pitch is located, it was threatened with extinction. Specifically, it is located on the land of the private Vajnory Agricultural Cooperative, which complicates its use and the management of these lands. The terms of the lease set by the landowner are liquidating for the continued existence of the club, which has more than 90 years of tradition, as well as the pitch itself. Not to mention the fact that no investment for improving the infrastructure of the pitch was possible under such conditions.

The city mayor, Matúš Vallo, together with the mayor of Vajnory, Michal Vlček, have been trying to resolve this issue of ownership of the land under the football pitch in Vajnory since they took office in 2018, i.e., for the past 7 years. After long and difficult negotiations between the capital city, the city district Bratislava – Vajnory and the Vajnory Agricultural Cooperative on the settlement of the property, an agreement was reached on an exchange of land, which resolves the entire situation. City councillors today expressed their support for the proposed solution by voting for it today.

With the proposed exchange of land, the capital city will acquire the land owned by the Vajnory Agricultural Cooperative on which the football pitch is located. This will facilitate the use and management of the land forming the football pitch in the future. On the other side, the Vajnory Agricultural Cooperative will acquire land that is currently owned by the capital city, namely land on which agricultural buildings owned by the Vajnory Agricultural Cooperative are located and which the cooperative uses for its agricultural activities. The exchange will thus result in a property-legal arrangement and consolidation of the land under the structures – agricultural buildings in the area of the agricultural cooperative owned by the Vajnory Agricultural Cooperative.

Help for Vrakuňa football, too

The Vrakuňa football club was also helped in a similar way. Part of the pitch as well as the grandstand of the football stadium in Vrakuňa are located on land belonging to the Podunajské Biskupice Agricultural Cooperative. In this case, too, city councillors approved a land swap, which will result in the city acquiring the land under the Vrakuňa sports field, and the agricultural cooperative will acquire the land on which industrial and agricultural halls and buildings are located, which the cooperative plans to use for agricultural activities, since its primary business activity is agricultural production.

The city will be able to complete the construction of an important turning lane from Jarovce to the D4

The capital city has for some time registered a request for and is very interested in building a turning lane from Jarovce in the direction of the D4/Rusovce, which would significantly increase the safety and fluidity of road traffic on the given section. The situation is complicated, however, by the ownership of the land on which such a turning lane could be built. Namely, these lands belong to a private person.

Mutual negotiations with the landowner have led to a solution, however. The result is an agreement on the exchange of lands in the location, which was approved today by the city council. The city will thus obtain the land needed to expand the intersection and to establish a right-turn lane in the direction from Jarovce to the D4. The road in this section will thus be widened, which will facilitate vehicles turning right towards the D4, as vehicles turning left towards Petržalka will no longer restrict those turning right, and vice versa. This will ultimately contribute to the smoothness and safety of road traffic on the given section. The length of the new right-turn lane will be approximately 50 m. In the future, the construction of a cycle path that will connect Jarovce with the Danube embankment is also planned on the section.

The current owner of the land in question will obtain from the capital city other land (arable land) in the location – of comparable worth, according to an expert opinion – that is unusable for the capital city.

Help for children and youth with disabilities

Bratislava has long been trying to be a city for children. Through the project of the same name, City for Children, we are not only building safer school environments but also encouraging parents and children to be independent. According to psychologists, independence and the ability to cope with small challenges are the cornerstones of resilient children who are ready to cope with larger challenges. Child psychologists and educators have in recent years been describing an alarming deterioration in children’s mental health. The COVID pandemic has been followed by a pandemic of anxiety, and the city of Bratislava is attempting to create better conditions for children and youth with mental disorders by cooperating with authorities in this field. Therefore, we are pleased that the city councillors today supported proposals that will allow organisations devoted to this group of children and youth to carry out their activities, thanks to which Bratislava will be a more accessible and kinder city for the most vulnerable children and youth.

1. Art therapies in a city rental block

City councillors today approved the lease of premises in a city rental apartment building on Muchovo námestie in Petržalka to the non-profit organisation Centrum Amadeus, n. o., for the purpose of providing various types of art therapies (particularly music therapy, art therapy, dance and movement therapy, drama therapy, bibliotherapy), namely for children and youth with disabilities and for seniors. The organisation is also planning to create a community space here for neighbours, families from disadvantaged backgrounds, for activities aimed at supporting mental health, inclusion and intergenerational cooperation.

Children and youth with disabilities in Bratislava have long had a shortage of possibilities and opportunities to develop their skills within the framework of leisure activities. Regular primary schools do not have the conditions that would enable them to offer such activities for children with disabilities, even though they could significantly benefit from them. Activities focused specifically on developing the disadvantaged part of their personality move them forward to the imaginary starting line of the general child population.

Despite great interest, Centrum Amadeus does not have the opportunity to accept new children, specifically due to the lack of space. The offers for space on the commercial market are at the same time greatly limiting for the organisation, since these are mostly unsuitable spaces in terms of being barrier-free, accessible or creating a safe environment for disadvantaged children, not to mention the market rental prices, which are inaccessible to such non-profit associations. Therefore, the lease of the space approved today is a great help for Centrum Amadeus, but especially for its clients.

2. Assistance for improving the mental health of children and youth

The City Council also ratified the lease of non-residential premises for the civic association OZ Liga za duševné zdravie SR (Association of Mental Health of the Slovak Republic). These are spaces under the informal name of ARCHA, which are located on the ground floor of a building known as the Ruttkay-Vrútocký Palace on Uršulínska ulica in the centre of Bratislava, for the purpose of operating a centre for the mental health of children and youth and persons providing care for such children and youth.

The centre is meant to be a place for children and young people with psychosocial disabilities, where they can meet for joint creation, music, crafts, community events in a safe and non-judgmental space. Since any positive intervention is not possible for this group of children and youth without the cooperation of parents and a wider group of people who care for such children from various perspectives, the centre will also provide educational and community services for parents.

The centre’s activities could begin as early as January next year.