Bielsko-Biala will undergo a blue-green revolution in the coming years. Last month the City announced that it had received funding to carry out a comprehensive revitalization plan for 15 urban spaces.
"Adaptation to Climate Change in the City of Bielsko-Biala" is the name of the program that will change the face of the city. The first consultations with the residents of Bielsko-Biała took place back in 2018, and the concrete project was created over two years. Originally, as many as 35 locations were proposed for revitalization, but in the end it was decided on 15 sites that required urgent intervention and whose modernization will bring the greatest benefit. They consist of areas already submitted to the Civic Budget, places indicated by residents during public consultations, and spaces that were identified during analyses conducted by the City.
The ambitious project involves the revitalization of an area of 82,000 square meters.
At the current design stage, it is expected that some 670 trees, 13,200 shrubs and 23,600 perennials and grasses will be planted. It is worth noting, however, that these figures are subject to change , as three projects are still in the final stages of development , Wieslaw Maj said at a City Council meeting last year.
Adaptation to climate change in the City of Bielsko-Biała - Wapienica watercourse
© UM of Bielsko-Biała
self-sufficient greenery
The new spaces have been designed according to several basic assumptions - reducing the primary consumption of raw materials and resources, preventing waste, using recycled and recyclable materials. These rather obvious goals are to be achieved through a series of more and less expected design solutions. Parks, squares and other new green spaces will be paved with porphyry pavers from demolition, and new landscaping elements are to be made from natural, local materials. What can be salvaged from the demolished squares will then be used elsewhere. With an eye to reducing environmental costs, greenery has also been planned - the areas being developed will be planted with clover lawns, which do not require intensive maintenance and are essentially self-sustaining. A taller and less frequently mowed lawn means more biologically active area and numerous flowers, which are a source of food for pollinating insects.
Adapting to climate change in the City of Bielsko-Biała - Jordan's garden on Wyzwolenia Street
© UM of Bielsko-Biała
blue issue
Although the planned interventions already seemed justified when they were first published last year, their urgency was dramatically confirmed by an event that took place in early June this year. That was when Bielsko experienced a torrential downpour that caused catastrophic flash flooding. The city estimated the losses at more than 18 million zlotys - the bulk of the amount that will be needed to implement the new "Adaptation to Climate Change" program. And one of its results is expected to be the support of water retention in Bielsk. Concrete squares will be the first to go, with a green transformation of, among others, the wild parking lot in Przedmieście Zywieckie street and the square at the junction of Wyspianski and Piastowska streets. The paved surface will also disappear from Żwirki i Wigury Square, where a small amphitheater will be built. Plenty of the already existing reservoirs will have their retention increased - this will happen, among other things, thanks to the concreting of the watercourse in Guest Valley and the creation of a retention reservoir in the Jordan garden on Wyzwolenia Street. In most of the upgraded spaces, concrete surfaces will be replaced with sidewalks made of water-permeable materials.
Adapting to climate change in the City of Bielsko-Biała - intersection of Sempołowska and PCK streets
© UM of Bielsko-Biała
Słowackiego park to be repaired
The revitalization of Slowackiego Park will arguably be the most significant action of the described project. This will be the second intervention carried out in this location in recent years. The previous one was completed in 2013 and, as it turned out, was fatal. Valued at 9 million zlotys, the work resulted in the creation of the city's notorious "alley of trash cans," where garbage cans were placed in absurdly high density, and the concreting of the main thoroughfare running through the 19th-century park. After every rain, the alley is covered with mud because no care was taken to ensure proper drainage. The biggest losses, however, have been suffered by the vegetation - in one of Bielskoye's most important parks, several trees die every year, whose root system was first disturbed during construction work and then tightly encased in paving stones.
Adapting to climate change in the City of Bielsko-Biała - the intersection of Sempołowska and PCK streets
© UM Bielsko-Biała
This is set to change, however, as as part of the described program in the park, the cobblestones will be replaced with water-permeable pavement, which will improve retention during rainstorms and, above all, take care of the proper hydration of the trees growing there. The City Council also announces the creation of a biodiverse public garden and the elimination of wild forebays, which will be achieved through the appropriate composition of green spaces. As can be seen in the visualizations provided by the City, small bodies of water will appear on the main avenue cutting through the park.
Adaptation to climate change in the City of Bielsko-Biała - Żwirki i Wigury Square
© UM of Bielsko-Biała
as FEnIKS from the ashes
The new investments in Bielsko-Biała will be built within the framework of the European Funds for Infrastructure, Climate, Environment 2021-2027. The cost of carrying out the work is estimated by the City to be at least PLN 24 million. It is known that more than 70% of these funds have been obtained through European Union funding. The investment is scheduled for two years, and its beginning is expected in 2025. The interventions will be carried out according to designs made by Anna Oliks of the Dobra Przestrzeń studio. It is worth remembering that these are not the only elements of the green metamorphosis that Bielsko-Biala will undergo in the coming years - recently the City announced plans to create a naturalistic park in the Aleksandrowice district and revitalize Chrobry Square, which has been a concrete pan since 2002. The work is expected to begin next year.
A full list of modernized spaces is available on the Bielsko-Biała City Hall website.
