The five-year concession on Ariana pond in the Borisovata Gradina park (Boris’s Garden), signed by Sofia mayor Boiko Borissov with local firm Profuds, was illegal because the city hall did not follow all the procedures required by law, daily Sega reported on April 18.

The pond is government property, but the city hall received a provisional right to manage it from Sofia governor Todor Modev in 2006 until the municipal authorities filed the requisite paperwork with the Cabinet, which alone can give make the agreement permanent, according to the daily.

Sega claimed to have obtained the agreement from an opposition city councillor, because the city hall refused to make them public, even though it should have under the freedom of information act. Sofia municipal authorities never filedthe application, the daily said.

Even if it did have the right to manage public government property, the city hall should have called a tender to pick a concessionaire, which it never did. Its excuse, according to the paper, was that no one was interested except Profuds.

The concession contract itself was strange in that it did not incorporate any clauses stipulating the minimum amount Profuds had to invest in regenerating the area, nor does it specify whether the city hall will be paid any concession fee.

The company did outline its plans for the pond and the surrounding area - setting up and operating at least two restaurants and a cafe, a skating rink and a playground, as well as rent out bicycles and boats.

According to Profuds, quoted by Sega, its repair works on the pond have cost the company three million leva so far. In return for its investment, the company would charge visitors of the restaurants around the pond and the boats, snowboard platforms and skating-rinks in it. It was not clear whether there was any restriction on the activities Profuds could do on the territory of the pond and who was to fix the prices for it, Sega said.