The motto of Bulgaria’s capital Sofia is Ever Growing, Never Ageing. According to some of its citizens though, it is growing, yet living conditions have not improved and the city has not become more attractive. However, a short stroll across Sofia’s streets and avenues and a quick reference to recent statistics show that things look different. Sofia is not only Bulgaria’s biggest city with a population of nearly 2 million people. It is also an economic, cultural and political center. The city has been subject to constant modernization in the recent years and has become more attractive and convenient. Indeed, its infrastructure and population have not been ageing. Moreover, Sofia is a relatively wealthy city as compared to other Bulgarian cities. In 2017 Sofia’s budget will exceed EUR 600 million which is more than the annual state subsidies for defense and security and nearly five times more than the budget of Bulgaria’s second largest city Plovdiv. This is due to a great extent to the rapid development of the local economy. The generous salaries offered in Bulgaria’s capital city and the abundance of available job positions attract every ambitious, skilled and qualified young Bulgarian from the countryside. That is why the second part of Sofia’s moto (Never Ageing) is absolutely true. That statement also concerns the city’s infrastructure.

In the past decade, Sofia municipality managed to modernize and renovate most of the city’s main avenues. Moreover, the city became cleaner. Sofia Municipality also created attractive conditions for construction of new residential districts and modernized its public transport. The citizens and the guests of Bulgaria’s capital can now travel in a modern subway and the construction of new underground lines and stations continues at a quick pace. The Sofia residents took care of their private properties themselves and many buildings which looked quite pitiful until recently are now revealing their beautiful architecture. We should not miss the fact that the average monthly salary in Sofia is now close to the average wages in Central and Western Europe.

The huge 2017 budget has to finance future projects aimed at developing and modernizing the capital city. The main accent will fall on the development of the public transport and the construction of the third subway line. The public transport will be modernized with more new and environmentally-friendly buses and trams. The local authorities are planning to build new gardens and green areas in all residential districts and give a contemporary look to the small city streets. We should not forget the restoration of the multiple archeological finds downtown Sofia, which once played a key role in the former Roman Empire. Moreover, the citizens of Bulgaria’s capital Sofia do not have to pay higher local taxes.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov