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Wed, Feb 08 2012
‘VIP beaches’?
Photo: Clive Leviev-Sawyer
A working group of Government ministries and coastal regional and municipal administrations is to consider changes to Bulgaria’s law on the Black Sea coast – and controversy has followed a reported proposal by Bourgas governor Konstantin Grebenarov to allow restricting access to beaches in front of hotels only to guests, barring use by the general public. The idea raised a storm of indignation from various voices who said that this would be in breach of Bulgaria’s constitution, which gives the state "exclusive ownership rights" over beaches.
Among these voices was Kavarna mayor Tsonko Tsonev, who said that idea of dividing beaches so that some would be accessible "only by the rich" as discriminatory. "Under the constitution, all beaches are public property, they are the property of all Bulgarian citizens and we cannot forbid some of them use of the beaches just because they are poor," he told mass-circulation daily 24 Chassa.
Writing in the same daily, history professor Dragomir Draganov asked "Is it that the constitution is not applicable in coastal areas?" As it was, Draganov said, some of those holding concessions on beaches broke the law and the constitution by putting up taverns on the beaches, operating paid parking areas and erecting barriers, in effect turning the beach into "exclusive private property".
Summer 2010 has already seen some controversy about access to beaches. Media reports quoted prosecutors as describing fences blocking public access to the beach at Rusalka resort as illegal.
Financial daily Pari said that while the idea of closing access to some beaches could make it possible for some resorts to offer higher-quality facilities and so attract wealthier customers, investors in tourism were likely to react badly because already Bulgaria’s beaches were too limited to accommodate the huge numbers of visitors and the large number of hotels that had been built recently.
Speaking to daily Dnevnik, Regional Development Minister Rosen Plevneliev spoke out against the idea of what media reports called "VIP beaches". However, Dnevnik said, in January his deputy, Ekaterina Zaharieva, said that there were plans to have six different categories of beaches, with varying tariffs for access to them.
Reports quoted Grebenarov as saying that next summer season, there would be "private beaches" at certain resorts and hotels, of the "all-inclusive" variety. But, speaking to Bulgarian National Television on August 24, he denied that he intended preventing Bulgarian citizens having access to beaches, saying that he wanted only to resolve the question of access to beaches. To a question, he rejected allegations that he was "lobbying for business interests".
Minister without portfolio Bozhidar Dimitrov, who is from Sozopol, said that Bulgaria had 384km of coast, but with harbours, industrial facilities and military areas, only about half was accessible. "And if you close some beaches… I do not know what you will be able to say to the Bulgarian citizen denied access to much of the coast" he said.
Various proposals have been put forward by officials for changes to the law on the Black Sea, to be considered by a working group, of representatives of the ministries of regional development, economy, finance, environment and the regional administrations of Dobrich, Varna and Bourgas.
Among these voices was Kavarna mayor Tsonko Tsonev, who said that idea of dividing beaches so that some would be accessible "only by the rich" as discriminatory. "Under the constitution, all beaches are public property, they are the property of all Bulgarian citizens and we cannot forbid some of them use of the beaches just because they are poor," he told mass-circulation daily 24 Chassa.
Writing in the same daily, history professor Dragomir Draganov asked "Is it that the constitution is not applicable in coastal areas?" As it was, Draganov said, some of those holding concessions on beaches broke the law and the constitution by putting up taverns on the beaches, operating paid parking areas and erecting barriers, in effect turning the beach into "exclusive private property".
Summer 2010 has already seen some controversy about access to beaches. Media reports quoted prosecutors as describing fences blocking public access to the beach at Rusalka resort as illegal.
Financial daily Pari said that while the idea of closing access to some beaches could make it possible for some resorts to offer higher-quality facilities and so attract wealthier customers, investors in tourism were likely to react badly because already Bulgaria’s beaches were too limited to accommodate the huge numbers of visitors and the large number of hotels that had been built recently.
Speaking to daily Dnevnik, Regional Development Minister Rosen Plevneliev spoke out against the idea of what media reports called "VIP beaches". However, Dnevnik said, in January his deputy, Ekaterina Zaharieva, said that there were plans to have six different categories of beaches, with varying tariffs for access to them.
Reports quoted Grebenarov as saying that next summer season, there would be "private beaches" at certain resorts and hotels, of the "all-inclusive" variety. But, speaking to Bulgarian National Television on August 24, he denied that he intended preventing Bulgarian citizens having access to beaches, saying that he wanted only to resolve the question of access to beaches. To a question, he rejected allegations that he was "lobbying for business interests".
Minister without portfolio Bozhidar Dimitrov, who is from Sozopol, said that Bulgaria had 384km of coast, but with harbours, industrial facilities and military areas, only about half was accessible. "And if you close some beaches… I do not know what you will be able to say to the Bulgarian citizen denied access to much of the coast" he said.
Various proposals have been put forward by officials for changes to the law on the Black Sea, to be considered by a working group, of representatives of the ministries of regional development, economy, finance, environment and the regional administrations of Dobrich, Varna and Bourgas.
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This comment has been removed by the moderator because it contained foul, abusive or discriminating language
We follow your posts Valeri because they are nearly comical!
I didn't say that Pat.
I said France's public beaches are rocks and dirt - I just came back from there.
The private ones - the fast majority at the resorts - are better but nothing like BG. BG's sand line can be 100 meters deep for miles. In France it was seldom more that 15 meters deep.
The gangster capitalism was in reference to "freedom"'s statement about BG being that is we even debated the issue. Tony was just sayng that in Florida they did the same - debated. Are they [...]
Read the full comment gangsters?You should follow my posts closer!
Let me ask you:
If my posts make no sense, why would
you follow them?
Also why would you bring up those junk cars - the Hummer division of GM went out of business (after the Chinese declined to purchase it) and Mustang is the ugliest rent a car you can get in the US.
Our gangsters have more taste in cars, although the lower level may go for
American automobiles - wouldn't know...
Well well Valeri, you do come out with some fine expressions, France's beaches are dirt and rocks, oh dear how little you have travelled to make such ill-informed statements. Poor Gypsy beggars being used as a comparison to the proletariat of France squatting on public beaches in Cannes :-)Followed by a serving of "Gangster capitalism in USA", you have to be blindfolded to the amount of Hummers and Mustangs that are raced around the Sveti Vlas marina car park!! In conclusion, I follow your comments with interest as they dont seem to have any cohesion or relevance to the subject [...]
Read the full comment matter! Keep it up though since practice makes perfect!
I can't believe anybody could even contemplate accepting a change in constitution to close public access to beaches. As was commented earlier,beaches are a natural resource and it is appalling that this beautiful resource is being/has been ruined in many places by building. Look at the horrific places in Spain - surely you don't want Bulgaria to become like that! Bulgaria is in a unique position in that it can look at the mistakes made in other countries decades before and learn a lesson from them.
No way what other counties are doing is their business - what planet are you on?
BG is constantly attacked for doing things other countries have been doing for years. Wake up and look around...
reading between the lines it's all about politicians finding new ways to fill their pockets. Leave the constitution as it is and start penalising those in breach. What other countries do or have done is their business...as long as Bulgarian politicians are as corrupt as they are Bulgaria is better off sticking to its current constitution.
Tony:
"Miami Beach Florida Hotels tried the same stunt 40 years ago to restrict beach access to hotel guests."
So according to "freedom"
"Even having this discussion is another example of gangster capitalism in the USA"?
Great example of our provincial negative narcissism.. we want to believe that anything "bad" can only happen in our village (BG)...
Miami Beach Florida Hotels tried the same stunt 40 years ago to restrict beach access to hotel guests. They
Lost, and the People won!!! the
Public has access to the beaches,
from south beach - 1st Street, all the way North to the Georgia Border,
without interruption.
The you must not consider France "civilized" because the public beaches there are just a bunch a dirt and rocks.
All sandy beaches in the South of France are divided between the hotels, and reserved for hotel guests, whom they charge much more than in BG.
What's worse - in BG you can at-least walk into any beach and pay for the chair and umbrella and stay.
Not so in France. If you aren't a guest of the hotel - you are out of luck. The hotel beach where we were, was [...]
Read the full comment practically empty (perhaps even some of the hotel guests didn't want to fork the 60 euros a day for the beach) and the public strip was jammed with people with no chance of even stretching on the ground. People were just sitting there and crouching like poor gypsy beggars - I felt like telling them - just go to BG fools!
Beaches must all be open to everyone, they are a state asset and once the concept of any private control is allowed it will eventually lead to the rich and connected having access to the detriment of the vast majority. Most civilized countries have solved this long ago by mandating all shoreline to the higher high tide line plus a certain distance, as public property. Even having this discussion is another example of gangster capitalism in Bulgaria.
The idea of a "concession" is for a private person or business to manage the beach as if it was being managed by the State. It is fair in my view to charge a very small fee for maintaining the condition of the beach;it is no different to some parks being managed by the State especially those that attract many tourist, simply for upkeep etc. The concession is not an open licence to run some sort of club med venture.
Because grin beaches are a natural resource of the State. The idea is that the State resources in particular those expressly recognized by a Constitution are vested with the interest of its people. The Constitution text is there to protect the resources of the State for the future benefit of its people.
The beaches have to be accessible for everyone, but we should observe a market-driven economy. There are coach and business class on a plane and why don't we have the same situation at the beaches?