The matter resurfaced during a City Council session held on August 31. Bolesławiec Mayor Piotr Roman informed councillors about the progress of negotiations with Tadeusz Szulc, director of PKP’s Real Estate Management Branch in Wrocław. In July this year, the municipal office received a letter in which PKP proposed transferring the rights to the property to the city. The company valued the plot at PLN 3 million. “This proves that it was worth negotiating and waiting,” Roman said.

The mayor replied to Director Szulc that, under the Commercialization Act, property could be transferred free of charge to local government units. Szulc replied, however, that the company could not transfer the plot free of charge.

“The years-long discussion with the Real Estate Management Branch is coming to an end. Let me remind you that the company’s previous offers reached PLN 7 million [była mowa też o 10 mln – przyp. red.],” Piotr Roman summed up. “Now I expect a decision from you: I can propose changes to the budget, or we will continue negotiating with PKP.”

Cezariusz Rudyk, head of the Civic Platform club, spoke next. “I was very pleased to hear that negotiations with PKP are coming to an end; at last, there is a light at the end of the tunnel,” he said. “However, I would like to know what PKP are actually offering us. The site has been divided into four plots. Is the company offering us all four plots for PLN 3 million, or only one quarter of that amount?”

Roman replied that the offer concerned an area of approximately 1.3 hectares. “The ‘moustaches’ [stare torowiska – przyp. red.] did not interest us from the beginning; we were interested in the main body of the plot,” he stressed.

The city may acquire the property through a negotiated procedure without a tender. “However, this would mean that we could not freely dispose of the land; a public-purpose investment would have to be developed there,” Roman explained. The second option is to enter the tender. “In that case, we would have complete freedom to use the plot. But the municipality’s position in the tender is worse than that of a private individual. For us to participate in the tender, the City Council would have to adopt an appropriate resolution. And that resolution would be public. Everyone interested would know how much the mayor could pay. It would be enough to offer one złoty more and the tender would be won. In my opinion, this site should be purchased through a negotiated procedure without a tender.”

Jarosław Kowalski of Bolesławiec XXI joined the discussion: “I have a question: what would have happened if councillors had listened to the opposition in December 2009 and entered PLN 7 million into the 2010 budget? Would we have carried out different investments? Seeing PLN 7 million entered in the budget, would the owner of the site have lowered the price to PLN 3 million?”

Roman took up the point. “I recall that one of the arguments used by the opposition when voting against the budget was that it did not include a financial item called ‘purchase of the Eastern Railway Station.’ I remember that session perfectly,” he stressed. “In the corridors, I even heard that the plot should be bought at any price. I did not want to strike a triumphant tone today and say, ‘I was right.’ Together, we managed to save several million złoty. If I had given in to the opposition, I would have lost PLN 4 million. I have made mistakes too, but sometimes it is worth admitting one’s mistakes and saying ‘mea culpa,’ rather than saying that this is a great Civic Platform success,” he added. “I never said that the city should buy the site for PLN 10 million,” Rudyk retorted.

Bogusław Nowak also spoke. “You all observed the opposition’s position on the Eastern Railway Station,” he said. “I think that negotiations with PKP began under pressure from Civic Platform and that the mayor finally got moving...”

The councillor was not allowed to finish his sentence, and a recess was announced.

“In most cases, I spoke about acquiring the site, not about how much should be paid for it,” the head of the Civic Platform club later explained. “The mayor should choose the best way to purchase the plot. The figure of PLN 7 million mentioned earlier concerned four plots with the ‘moustaches,’ not one. When there were budget surpluses, I asked the mayor whether he would be willing to allocate any money toward purchasing the Eastern Railway Station. I never said how much he should spend.”

According to Rudyk, the city municipality should acquire the site through a negotiated procedure without a tender. “But we urge the mayor to have the plot valued first, so that we know how much it is worth,” he added.

(ii report)