City of Ljubljana

The City and its environment

Ljubljana, the capital city of the Republic of Slovenia, is situated almost at the geometric centre of the country. In an exceptionally favourable site at the so-called Ljubljana Gates, the city lies on one the major routes from central Europe and the Danubian Area towards Italy and the northern Adriatic ports. In addition to trade, the city later assumed the role of the nation’s cultural centre. Major industrial activity in the city is of a later date, mostly developed during the decades that followed the Second World War.

On achieving independence after the collapse of the former Yugoslav Federation in 1991, Ljubljana acquired a new political and economic role. This situation has presented the city with new challenges especially regarding international integration, the formulation of an appropriate strategy for future city development and in determining its role among the major European cities. One of Ljubljana's major assets today, is its cross-roads geographical location which offers the city considerable communications and trade advantages within the wider European context.

Housing Situation and Large Housing Estates

The current housing situation, particularly with respect to size and quality of housing stock is, more or less, similar to that in the majority of the former socialist countries. This stock is characterised by high- density multi-family apartment blocks in high-rise construction neighbourhoods. There is, however, a considerable stock of single-family housing (of the do-it-yourself type), the only form of tenure which, in terms of production, has remained stable throughout the last decades and is increasingly produced in the nineties. The production of new housing in the public (social) sector has been steadily declining from the beginning of the 90s.

The present large housing estates were constructed mainly during the 1960s and ´70s as an urgent requirement to accommodate the massive influx of immigrants into the city, particularly from the other Republics of the former Yugoslav Federation who were attracted by the job opportunities offered trough the city’s industrialisation. The industrially produced estates range in sizes from 5000 to 15,000 inhabitants. The buildings are characterised by a large number of small size flats on each floor and an inappropriate architectural concepts of dwelling units. The constructions were normally erected with poor quality building materials.

It must be pointed out however, that large housing estates in Slovenia have not, as yet, presented any serious rehabilitation problems. The problems of maintenance are, likewise not acute, as yet, but may become so in the near future, especially due to the weak economic situation of some owners who were offered the opportunity to cheaply purchase their dwelling during the privatisation of the former public housing stock.

Problems and demand for action

• Poor quality construction has resulted in high maintenance costs and will, analogously in the future, also lead to high rehabilitation costs.
• High-density housing in high-rise construction neighbourhoods is, generally, no longer a favoured means of dwelling.
• Many large housing estates are associated with low-income households (sometimes with ethnic connotations) and rowdy behaviour and are, as such, socially stigmatised and avoided by higher-income groups.
• Measures should be urgently taken to start repairs on the damaged parts of the housing estates and to correct those structural mistakes which were made during construction before these will become more demanding and more costly to repair.
• The state bodies concerned with the preparation and implementation of housing policy should pay attention to the warnings that have recently been pronounced, regarding "poor owners" in multi-family housing blocks, and try to find solutions before the situation worsens. They may include the introduction of a relief (emergency) fund or housing savings bank capable of providing financial assistance, in the form of loans, for critical cases.
• Amendments are to be made to the legislation regulating the organisation and mutual relationships between the owners/tenants of dwellings in multi-family housing and housing management.
• More acceptable forms of mass housing construction (lower density multi-family low-rise apartment blocks) should be developed.

Actors and activities

Due to the changes introduced during the transition from a planned to a market economy, which resulted in the abolition of the previous sources of financing new housing construction, the city is presently struggling to maintain a minimum stock for social sector housing needs. The majority of the existing mass housing projects, or those presently under construction, have been financed by private building companies. The latter are mainly multi-family low-rise structures intended for middle and high income earners and sold at market prices.

Apart from the preparations undertaken by the municipal housing authority (the Housing Fund of the City of Ljubljana) to introduce a Council for the Protection of Tenant Rights, the city is currently not engaged in any maintenance or rehabilitation activity in any of the large housing estates.

”Nove Fuzine” Estate

The estate was built between 1980 and 1988 as a high density neighbourhood to serve as a dormitory settlement for migrant workers. It is located approximately 3 km from the city centre. Its western and southern edges border with the River Ljubljanica, offering the neighbourhood an exceptionally beautiful spatial ambient. The nearby woods on the slopes of the Golovec hill further accentuate the qualitative landscape of the area. As a result of these natural features, the estate's biggest asset is the abundance of green space both within the estate and in its surrounds. Open air recreation facilities (walkways, jogging tracks, cycle-ways, etc) are equally adequately available, and there is a satisfactory supply of communal infrastructure and urban services.This estate is one of the first housing projects in Slovenia in which architectural and structural design concepts allowed, during construction, for the application of the principle of flexibility of dwelling units.

Physical and ecological situation

• Abundant green space although not very well looked after.
• High level of pollution especially during winter months, caused by the city district heating plant in the vicinity.
• The concentration of several high density neighbourhoods in the eastern part of the city (where the estate is located) has led to heavy traffic jams at peak times, which also contributes to the high level of air pollution.

Problems

• Poor maintenance of dwellings may eventually lead to dilapidation and serious rehabilitation problems
• The growing concentration of low-income households (flats in this estate are comparatively cheaper than in other parts of the city) has resulted in high income households moving out of the estate. This may consequently lead to the social segregation of the estate.
• There is a public safety risk, particularly during night hours, caused by various youth gangs.

Strategies

• The city has not developed any strategy, as yet, for the development of the estate.

Source: EA.UE: A future for large housing estates, Berlin 1998

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