The Regional Chamber of Audit (RIO) uncovered a series of irregularities relating to the purchase of a property from the Podgórzyn municipal housing stock, for which an official of Karkonosze County paid 1% of its value.
One irregularity was that the buyer declared in the report that she did not own another residential property, even though in her April 2024 asset declaration she stated that she co-owned a house worth PLN 1,500,000.
The inspection revealed that the municipality rented the property to the official on 1 December 2023, even though she was not included in the 2023 list of people eligible and waiting for allocation or rental from the Podgórzyn municipal housing stock.
The official’s financial situation—the average monthly income per household member—was also not checked, nor was it verified whether she was a resident of the municipality or already held property rights to another premises, in breach of further provisions of the municipal resolution.
A nice property in a tourist town
The property belonging to the municipal housing stock is located in a well-maintained building and was intended in 2022 to be used by the tenant as a garage and utility rooms.
The property consisted of four utility rooms with an area of approximately 70 square metres. The agreement was concluded for a fixed term, until 31 October 2025. The tenant undertook to renovate it at her own expense so that it could become an independent residential unit. After the renovation, the mayor undertook to sell the property to the official without a tender, with the applicable discount.
According to the RIO inspection findings, on 1 March 2023 the official submitted a letter to the municipal office concerning renovation work on the property and asked the mayor to convert the non-residential premises into a residential unit. The documents showed that the renovation carried out by the official cost her PLN 20,520.26.
During the term of the agreement, the rent for the non-residential property was not indexed because the agreement contained no such provision. It also turned out that the municipal mayor had concluded a lease agreement with the official even though she had not submitted an application for one. Such an application was required in an announcement on the municipality’s website.
According to the RIO, concluding this agreement breached provisions of two municipal resolutions: one on the rules for selling residential premises from the municipal housing stock and another on the rules for renting them. The mayor was not authorised to promise the official that once she renovated the property, it would be rented to her and then sold without a tender and with a discount.
In its post-inspection opinion, the Regional Chamber of Audit stated that when the renovation agreement was signed, the property was still non-residential; that the renovation agreement had been concluded in November 2022; and that only later, on 28 December 2023, a resolution of the Podgórzyn Municipal Council designated the property for sale with a discount. Even later, on 1 February 2024, an order by the mayor designated the property for sale without a tender, set the price and only then published the list of properties for sale.
Without a tender and for 1% of its value
On 1 February 2024, mayor Mirosław Kalata designated the property for sale without a tender. The price was set at PLN 130,000. On 20 February 2024, a “Negotiation Report” was drawn up concerning the sale of the municipal property to the official who had been renting it.
The date on which the report was signed also concerned the inspectors. It was signed before the deadline for applications to purchase the property by people with priority rights to acquire it on another basis, before 21 days had elapsed from its posting on the notice board, and before the Karkonosze Starost had issued a certificate confirming that the property was an independent unit. Consequently, the property was valued contrary to the Regulation of the Minister of Development and Technology of 5 September 2023 on property valuation.
Nevertheless, on 10 April 2024 the official bought the property from the municipality for just PLN 1,300. The sale was exempt from VAT and a 99% discount was granted. This enabled her to purchase, for such a low price, a 70-square-metre property (with a usable area of 34.27 square metres) in a tourist town.
An exemplary official
Several years earlier, the same official had held a managerial position in Bolesławiec. As a manager in Bolesławiec, she enjoyed the trust of mayor Piotr Roman, who always assessed her work in the most favourable terms. Her work was also highly valued by the Ceramic Brotherhood and other institutions in the city of ceramics. These included the former Bolesławiec parish priest Andrzej Jarosiewicz, who admired the official’s sculpting talent. During her many years of work in Bolesławiec, the official herself implemented many valuable cultural initiatives, projects and programmes.
Publicly available information suggests that the official is also a valued employee who performs her duties exemplary in Karkonosze County and enjoys the great trust of starost Krzysztof Wiśniewski.
Podgórzyn Municipality is heavily in debt
Despite the official’s merits, giving away housing for 1% of its value is not in the interest of an indebted municipality. In autumn 2024, Radio Wrocław reported that Podgórzyn Municipality was facing serious financial problems and that almost half of its budget consisted of debt. Journalists reported that monthly instalments on loans and bonds amounted to PLN 1,300,000. Podgórzyn’s new authorities revealed that mayor Mirosław Kalata had paid employees record-high bonuses. Between 2018 and 2023, this was reportedly to have burdened the municipal budget by PLN 2,000,000.
An apartment in Podgórzyn Municipality costs an average of PLN 7,000 per square metre on the official websites of real-estate agents. The municipality could have earned more than PLN 200,000 from the 34-square-metre residential property alone, instead of PLN 1,300.
There are those responsible, but no accountability
Following a comprehensive inspection of the financial management of Podgórzyn Municipality, the Regional Chamber of Audit in Wrocław established the following in its post-inspection report of 4 February 2025:
(...) Responsibility for the irregularities and shortcomings that occurred during the period covered by the inspection lies with: the former Mayor of Podgórzyn Municipality (holding office until 6 May 2024) and the current Mayor of the Municipality (holding office since 7 May 2024), pursuant to Article 53(1) of the Act of 27 August 2009 on public finances and Article 4(5) of the Act of 29 September 1994 on accounting; the former Municipal Treasurer (dismissed from office on 29 August 2024), pursuant to Article 54(1) of the Act on public finances; and the substantive employees of the Podgórzyn Municipal Office, in accordance with their assigned duties. (....) — emphasis by the editorial office.
In February 2025, we asked Podgórzyn mayor Anna Kurowska:
- What decisions will you, mayor, take regarding the property purchased for PLN 1,300?
- According to the information we collected, this property serves as an art studio. Will the municipality make use of this in any way, for example for tourism purposes?
- What consequences will mayor Kalata face, and what consequences will mayor Kurowska face, in connection with the RIO’s post-inspection assessment that responsibility for the irregularities and shortcomings that occurred during the period covered by the inspection lies with the former Mayor of Podgórzyn Municipality (holding office until 6 May 2024) and the current Mayor of the Municipality (holding office since 7 May 2024)?
- Will the former municipal treasurer mentioned in the post-inspection report also face any consequences?
We received an email in response on 17 February 2025
In response to the enquiry, I inform you that action will be taken after the inspection report and post-inspection statement, including the recommendations, have been fully analysed and after a response has been received from the Regional Chamber of Audit to the enquiry submitted by Podgórzyn Municipality.
At the current stage of the proceedings, it is difficult to determine what action will be taken, given the complexity of the matter. Nevertheless, it should be emphasised that these actions will comply with the applicable law and remain within the scope of the duties of the body managing the municipality.
Yours faithfully, Kamila Misztela, Secretary of Podgórzyn Municipality
We emailed the official asking whether she was aware that the municipal mayor had broken the law when issuing the decision to sell and rent the property, and whether she considered the purchase of a municipal flat ethical, knowing as an official that municipal premises are intended for registered residents of the municipality in a difficult financial situation. We are waiting for a response.