The Slovak Bardejov faces disputes with UNESCO due to new construction

Under construction X-center; source: ahojbardejov.sk

Bardejov - The eastern Slovak town of Bardejov faces disputes with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) due to the planned new construction of a shopping center, as its historic center has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2000. This was reported today by the portal pravda.sk. According to preservationists, Bardejov risks being removed from the list if the investor does not modify the project for the center.
    The planned commercial and entertainment complex named X-center is to be built outside the protected heritage zone, but according to preservationists, UNESCO rules obligate the city to protect the broader urban structure and views from important locations. The center could disrupt these views, as the intended café on the second floor, from which guests would have a view of the historic center, would obstruct the visitors of the main Town Hall Square's view of Keller Street.
    Eva Semanová, the director of the Regional Monument Office in Prešov, believes that if the shopping center were built in the proposed form approved by the building authority, UNESCO would assess it as a negative intervention in the protected area. Bardejov could then end up on the list of endangered sites, with the international organization requesting corrective action. If this did not occur, UNESCO could completely remove the city from the list.
    Removal from the cultural heritage list is a last resort; however, UNESCO has taken this step several times. A well-known case is that of the German city of Dresden, which lost its UNESCO heritage status due to the construction of a new bridge. In 2007, the organization similarly intervened in the case of Oman, where the government allowed a drastic reduction of a reserve that is home to the endangered Arabian oryx.
    Slovakia has seven entries on the UNESCO list of cultural and natural heritage. Besides Bardejov, it also includes Banská Štiavnica, Spiš Castle, and Levoča, as well as wooden churches in the Carpathians.