Local services
On 29th of February 2024, Mayor of Debrecen László Papp and György Korbeák, Municipal Representative, held a press conference on the panel programme and the residential developments in the Újkerti residential area.
“When adopting the budget, our basic concept was that development should be noticeable in all areas of the city,” László Papp said. He pointed out that the development policy of Debrecen has long been characterised by the fact that the city’s economy is developing everywhere, from the residential areas to the city centre and the suburbs.
He stressed that in the case of housing estates, the budget includes own resources, so that development is basically not financed from EU funds. He recalled that the prefabricated housing programme was relaunched in Debrecen in 2023. In the present case, it is being implemented from the budget of the Municipality of Debrecen, without state or other EU subsidies. This year, as last year, the city is investing HUF 500 million to continue the panel programme, the mayor announced.
He noted that in the case of the previous tender, applications were invited for the renovation of the exterior of residential buildings, thermal insulation, window replacement and lift replacement, but then there were a lot of applications for lift reconstruction. However, the latter could not be supported due to the conditions set out in the call for applications. “As we have realised that in many cases the renovation of lifts is more important than the replacement of lifts and the former is more manageable in terms of costs. We will amend the call for applications this year and, taking into account the previous needs, we will include the possibility of lift renovation in this year’s panel programme,” he explained.
The mayor said that six applications were received last year and were positively assessed. Of these, three were for façade renovation and three for lift replacement, for a total of HUF 161 million. László Papp pointed out that the renovation programme is open not only to prefabricated houses, but also to apartment blocks with at least 12 apartments built before 1990. He added that applications could be submitted from 1st May to 31st of October, and that the programme will be accompanied by a free technical audit.
The mayor pointed out that the renovation of the service roads in the housing estate will continue, as well as the programme of pavement and staircase renovation. He said that this year, ten road sections will undergo rehabilitation programmes, but not all of them will be service roads. The various residential areas of the city – the Újkert, the Vénkert, the Tócóskert and the Tócóvölgy – are affected by the improvements. This year, the city is spending nearly a quarter of a billion forints, also from its own budget, to renovate the service roads in the housing estates.
In terms of the Green City Programme, a lot has been achieved in recent years. Playgrounds and public spaces in the Újkert have also been renovated. Compared to previous years, they can provide a significantly higher amount of HUF 175 million HUF for the renovation of outdated or worn-out playground equipment, and this money will also be used for the Újkert, he underlined.
György Korbeák recalled that the Újkert has been renewed in recent years. Highlighting some of the significant developments, he said that more than 23 staircases have been renovated since 2016, a community garden was created in the district last summer, and the playground with a slide on the corner of Böszörményi-Füredi Road is still very popular among the people of Debrecen. Speaking about developments in the near future, he said that 140 metres of the service road between Jerikó Street and Menyhárt Square will be renewed and the asphalt will be replaced.
