March 5 this year. municipal council and mayor elections will be held. The MadeinVilnius.lt portal will publish articles on the city's most pressing issues, the answers to which are submitted by the candidates for the post of Vilnius mayor, all month long until the elections. The questions were asked of candidates who exceeded 5% in the last polls. threshold of electoral votes.
Almost all the candidates for the seat of the mayor of Vilnius answered the questions asked by the portal: Artūras Zuokas, Valdas Benkunskas, Mykolas Majauskas, Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius, Lukas Savickas and Rasa Budbergytė. The chairman of the LLRA-KŠS party Valdemar Tomaszewski (Polish Waldemar Tomaszewski) did not provide answers.
Last year, there was no shortage of municipal actions that caused controversy in Vilnius. During the summer, the people of Vilnius laughed that the city managed to become a jungle, because the municipality decided not to cut grass in many parts of the city due to bio-diversity. Controversies were also caused by the green wave of Vilnius, during which trees and bushes were planted in various parts of the city, and some appeared on the streets of the city. We decided to ask the candidates for mayor of Vilnius if they plan to continue the current municipal projects.
Will the government's current projects - green wave and grass cutting - continue?
Arthur Zuokas
Artūras Zuokas says that last year's unmowed grass has already become a joke, which cost the city dearly.
"Even the prosecutor's office was approached about unmowed meadows in the capital, because there was more than one traffic accident due to tall grass. Later, after cutting the grass that was too tall, all the rainwater wells got clogged during the rain and the streets of Vilnius literally turned into rivers. Another failed experiment that violates the Public Procurement Agreement. I'm certainly not saying that everywhere you need to mow the grass like in a stadium, but in cities these are exceptional places. Mowing the grass is a matter of city hygiene and aesthetics, just like a beautiful flower garden", says the candidate for mayor of Vilnius.
The candidate emphasizes that Vilnius is one of the greenest capitals in the world, but the greening in it certainly cannot be chaotic. After becoming the mayor, A. Zuokas will strive to use public funding responsibly and efficiently in planting new greenery.
"For example, Constitution Avenue planting 40 trees cost about 250 euros, although experts said that the trees here will simply be tortured. In comparison, we allocate only 000 euros to the maintenance of Pasakaki Park, which covers an area of more than 20 hectares. Jomanto Park in Baltupiai has not received any attention in eight years, neither have Verkių and Ozo. With 50 euros, we would have fixed 000 parks", - observes A. Zuokas.
Valdas Benkunskas
Valdas Benkunskas promises to change the current policy of the municipality and will seek to find a balance between the needs of the residents and the city and the nurturing of nature. In this way, Vilnius will be divided into two zones.
"The lawn area, where the grass is constantly mowed, will include the courtyards of apartment buildings, park grounds, public places of the city that are visited by many people. Grassland zone - areas mowed 1 or 2 times a year, where the aim is to ensure the flourishing of wildlife, will consist of less frequented park areas, road protection zones, where it does not interfere with the visibility of traffic, river banks. We will ensure that every resident can check which zone a specific territory belongs to, as well as easily submit a request to change the principles of mowing in this zone," he says. V. Benkunskas.
After becoming the mayor, the candidate, together with the team, will inventory the existing trees and try to save them in every way. The value of the trees growing in the city will be increased, and if they are cut down or damaged illegally, the culprits will be fined.
"We will assert that when submitting project proposals, instead of asking for permits, as is the case now, in projects where mature trees can potentially be cut down, they would be considered by the public commission for the protection, maintenance and management of Greenlands and plantations," comments the candidate for the mayor's chair.
If there is a need to remove trees, the municipality will promote a dialogue between Vilnius residents, arborists and landscaping specialists in order to find out the reasons why such works are being carried out. Cut down trees will be replanted, and Vilnius residents will be educated about changes in the city. Greenery will be planned more responsibly so that they do not have to be replanted.
"We will replace degraded or low-value trees and shrubs with more valuable plants, and we will create not only green but also blooming greenery. Until now, we will transplant the plants planted in the wrong places to the right places, we will speed up the uncovering of the roots from the hard surfaces. In addition, we will separate high-traffic streets from residential houses with green zones, we will provide professional help to green up the territories of sleeping areas, we will take care of the maintenance of common gardens growing in the city", V. Benkunskas shares his plans.
Finally, investments will be made in the maintenance of parks and reserves. They will be more adaptable to attendance.
Mykolas Majauskas
Mykolas Majauskas did not comment on the issue of grass cutting in Vilnius, but promised that parks and public spaces will be green and comfortable.
"We will ensure proper maintenance of the greenery, the quality of the sidewalks and we will organize the city parks so that it is possible to do sports and enjoy nature safely, and not only in the very center," promised M. Majauskas.
Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius
Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius promises to continue the Green Wave of Vilnius, because, according to the candidate, it brings only pluses to the city. According to the candidate, it improves the quality of life, reduces air pollution, helps fight heat islands and improves precipitation absorption.
"I will cut the city grass where people walk, vehicles move and aesthetic and/or representational considerations require it, I will not cut it where it does not bother anyone (for example, the slopes of the Western bypass)", the "Freedom Party" candidate shares his plans.
Lukas Savickas
Lukas Savickas notes that the goal of the Green Wave is good, but poorly implemented. The candidate is preparing to improve this project.
"I myself am in favor of the development of bio-diversity and green areas in the city, but we must be tidy, make sure that the city is comfortable to live in and does not look abandoned. I think that many citizens of Vilnius, especially those who live in their own houses, garden communities, take care of their yards, cut grass, prune trees and bushes around their houses. The city of Vilnius is the home of all of us, so I see no reason why we, the city government, should be negligent and act differently," emphasizes the candidate for the mayoral seat.
Rasa Budbergyte
Rasa Budbergytė does not think that not mowing the grass in the summer is a good decision. According to the candidate, the places where the grass was not cut looked bad that summer and became the "garbage" of the city. The candidate says that the municipality cannot save money on the citizens' quality of life account, so she promises to take care of the city properly and will maintain the sanitary order.
"I agree that the promotion of biodiversity in the city is important, but for that purpose, green islands set aside for this purpose are completely sufficient (...). Yes, there are places where constant grass cutting is not really necessary, but cutting grass in residential areas, pedestrian areas is simply necessary. Otherwise, we will live in the jungle", says the politician.
