Protests Erupt in Split Over Parking Removal

Learner News | 09/10/2024

Today, Croatian Learner News dives into the heated dispute in Split, as residents rally against local changes. Discover what’s fueling the tension and what solutions they are seeking from the city authorities.

Protests Erupt in Split Over Parking Removal

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The news in Croatian

U Splitu su stanovnici1 nezadovoljni uklanjanjem2 parkirnih mjesta. Prosvjed3 je održan jer nema alternative za parkiranje, a planiraju posaditi4 cvijeće na tim mjestima. Stanari kažu da promjene otežavaju5 pristup kućama i traže dijalog s gradom. Situacija stvara napetosti6 među građanima i gradskim vlastima.

  1. stanovnik (m.)
    osoba koja stalno prebiva u određenom mjestu ili kući ↩︎
  2. uklanjanje (n.)
    postupak da se nešto makne ili ukloni s mjesta ↩︎
  3. prosvjed (m.)
    javno izražavanje neslaganja ili nezadovoljstva ↩︎
  4. posaditi
    staviti biljku ili sjeme u zemlju da raste ↩︎
  5. otežavati
    činiti nešto težim ili složenijim ↩︎
  6. napetost (f.)
    stanje zategnutih odnosa ili konflikta ↩︎

Translation

In Split, residents are unhappy about the removal of parking spaces. A protest was held as there is no alternative for parking, and it is planned to plant flowers in these areas. The residents claim that the changes make it more difficult to access their homes and are calling for dialogue with the city officials. The situation is causing tensions between the citizens and local government.

Text Comprehension

Question: Why are the residents protesting in Split?

Because parking spaces are being removed and there is no alternative for parking.

Question: What do the residents want from the city authorities?

They want to have a dialogue with the city.

Vocabulary

CroatianEnglish
stanovnik (m.)resident
uklanjanje (n.)removal
prosvjed (m.)protest
posaditiplant
otežavatimake difficult
napetost (f.)tension

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Read the full story

The protest occurred near a pedestrian crossing by a nursery, where residents continuously crossed to underscore their grievances. They have pointed out that no alternative parking solutions have been proposed by the city, exacerbating existing issues of vehicle accommodation in the area.

According to Ante Glavaš, a representative and organiser of the protest, the city’s new ruling, supposedly aimed at introducing order, is creating more disorder. Residents have been informed of plans to plant flowers in the vacated spaces, a move they see as impractical. Glavaš highlighted that he had to reach out to the local Parks and Plantings company independently to understand these developments, suggesting that communication from city officials has been lacking.

Protests Erupt in Split Over Parking Removal
Protests Erupt in Split Over Parking Removal

The controversy is rooted in the historical development of the area. Many of these houses were constructed in the 1960s with valid permits, yet plans from that era did not anticipate such road expansions. Residents argue that the urban development plans have unfairly disadvantaged them over the years, as reflected by Julija Budimir Bekan, the Deputy Chair of the Blatine-Škrape city district. She stressed that the infrastructure changes prevent secure access for families, the elderly, and the less mobile, and requests for dialogue have been ignored by city authorities.

Stanko Bajić, an 80-year-old resident, expressed his frustrations over having to use new garages situated far from his home. The parking options are not only inconvenient but are also oversubscribed, as the number of subscriptions outpaces available spaces.

With safety concerns and community disruptions on the rise, the protest has highlighted growing tensions between city residents and local government regarding urban planning and residential access. Residents are calling for a rethink of the planned measures and for more collaborative solutions that address their needs.

Info: “Croatian Learner News” is a service from “Let’s Learn Croatian”, a language school dedicated to teaching Croatian. We offer a variety of online Croatian courses designed to cater to diverse learning needs.


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