Residents of Komiža, a coastal town on Vis island, have been voicing their concerns lately in regards to the announced construction of a new hotel, reportedly twice as big as what the public infrastructure in this little town could withstand.
The first public presentation of the new Hotel Biševo was scheduled for today, but only city councillors and members of the Department of Urbanism and Physical Planning were invited to attend. The residents of Komiža, in turn, haven’t been invited, and they’re rightfully worried that the new hotel with 700 beds is going to put too much pressure on their little town, reports Morski.hr.
The old Hotel Biševo was a two-star facility with 300 beds. A new luxury hotel with double the capacity will be built in its place, further increasing the number of guests in the already popular destination.
The investor was the one who decided that the residents shouldn’t attend the presentation, as stated in the invitation. The hotel is owned by PBZ Croatia Osiguranje, a compulsory pension fund. It’s also known that the project involves the company Modra Špilja d.d. from Komiža, architecture studio 3LHD from Zagreb and the company Urbos d.o.o from Split, with the latter known to deal in physical planning.
Komiža residents have reason to wonder whether the public infrastructure of their town, which covers an area of 48 square kilometres and has a permanent population of 1,500, will be able to withstand the increase in road traffic expected after the hotel is put into operation. The citizens are not against the hotel, but they’re calling for a facility of appropriate size and capacity for a place like Komiža.
Concerned councillors and citizens have addressed the competent ministries on several occasions, most often in regards to the legality of the process and the decision not to involve the citizens in the process of modification of zoning plans, but have not yet received proper answers.
‘The public will be involved once a public consultation is announced’, stated Komiža Mayor Tonka Ivčević in a short reply to the latest inquiry from Morski. Although it’s been nearly a month since they’ve sent her a detailed query regarding the project, the mayor has only replied with the above statement this morning, after they pointed out that ignoring reporters won’t help her turn the public’s attention away from the matter.
Mayor Ivčević has reiterated that ‘the interest of Komiža locals is her top priority’ and that ‘she would never allow for anyone to disrupt the development of Komiža for the benefit of its residents in any way’.
Many guests and returnees are worried for the future of Komiža, as they’ve chosen to live or stay in this town exactly because it’s quiet, peaceful and pleasant to reside in. The question is, how long is it going to remain that way?
