Councillors were outraged by an article entitled "Bolesławiec councillors performed an economic miracle", published in "Gazeta Wojewódzka" several weeks ago. The author wrote that, following the City Council’s amendment to the spatial development plan, the value of a municipal plot could increase by as much as four million złoty, and that the main beneficiaries of this change would be the company of Jan Cołokidzi and Henryk Guzik. The heated discussion sparked by the article lasted about half an hour. According to the City Council, the information in the article in question is false and unverified. The councillors will probably demand that "Gazeta Wojewódzka" publish a correction.
The main item on the session’s agenda was the vote on adopting the report on the execution of the city budget for 2006 and on granting the mayor a vote of approval, also for the previous year. Councillor Józef Burniak announced that his club would vote against the resolutions, partly because of Bolesławiec’s debt and the numerous loans taken out by the city. He appealed to the councillors not to "break the sound barrier in their euphoria". He also admitted that he was concerned about construction, which he described as "the most neglected area of activity of the urban municipality". Piotr Roman replied that there was no euphoria or self-satisfaction, but "hard work", and that loans were being taken out for investments—roads and sewer systems—as conditions had to be created for investors, meaning that infrastructure had to be addressed first. Both key resolutions were adopted with 17 votes in favour. Only two councillors from the Left and Democrats voted against.
At the session, the mayor of Bolesławiec presented the councillors with the prestigious distinctions our city had received between sessions. He mentioned, among other things, that at the 10th General Assembly of the Association of Polish Counties, held on 3 and 4 April, Bolesławiec took third place in the ranking of municipalities. Of course, the mayor also mentioned what was probably the most important distinction received recently—the special award for Poland’s most energy-efficient municipality.
There was also mention of the distinction our city received on 18 April. That day, Bolesławiec was awarded the honorary title "Local Government Friendly to a Learning School". The ceremony took place in the Throne Room of the Royal Castle in Warsaw. The certificate was accepted by Krystyna Boratyńska, head of the Social Affairs Department of Bolesławiec City Hall. The competition is organised by the Centre for Citizenship Education and the Polish-American Freedom Foundation. The title is particularly pleasing because only 23 local governments across Poland received similar certificates.
At Wednesday’s session, Piotr Roman admitted that there was still no candidate for deputy mayor. One candidacy had been considered, but the person in question withdrew. The mayor also urged the councillors to join a campaign promoting the city by placing stickers bearing the slogan "Bolesławiec – city of ceramics" on vehicle registration plates. We also learned that the cost of constructing the bicycle paths whose development we previously reported on had already been estimated. It will be approximately PLN 11 million.
(GA information)