Mayor Dumitru BOROȘ, about the modernization and urban development initiatives implemented in the Municipality of Bârlad.

The municipality of Bârlad, located in the southern part of Vaslui County, stands out for its efforts in modernization and urban development, providing continuously improving infrastructure and a diverse range of cultural and educational facilities

Attracting attention through investments in healthcare services, education, and infrastructure, Bârlad is becoming increasingly attractive to investors and residents.

Under the guidance of Mayor Dumitru Boroș, the Municipality of Bârlad can boast an impressive series of successfully completed projects.

Mayor Dumitru BOROȘ: “The Municipality of Bârlad is currently undergoing an unprecedented modernization process”

The local administration has managed to attract over 187 million euros to the city, and through funding from the local budget, multiple initiatives have been supported, including the paving and rehabilitation of important streets, the establishment of bike lanes, and the creation of new routes for public transportation. Through European and Norwegian funds, a modern public lighting system has been implemented, contributing to the aesthetic appearance of the city and improving the quality of life in the community. Details about these projects are extensively presented in discussions about local development.

What are the main urban modernization and development initiatives implemented in the Municipality of Bârlad in recent years, and how have they contributed to improving the city’s infrastructure and quality of life?

The Municipality of Bârlad is currently undergoing an unprecedented modernization process. It may be a bit late, admittedly, but it’s happening! We’ve intervened practically in all strategic segments of the municipality. Firstly, we’ve started the rehabilitation of the road infrastructure, where we’ve partly acted from the local budget to pave streets of signifi cant local interest, but we’ve also attracted structural funds of over 10 million euros.

These European funds have allowed us to completely refurbish heavily traffi cked streets and sidewalks, to establish bicycle lanes for the first time, to create new routes for public transportation, and, most importantly, to purchase and deploy 10 new electric buses on these routes, for which we’ve built charging stations and, of course, a modern depot.

“We’ve brought over 187 million euros to Bârlad, and we won’t stop there!”

In parallel, with Norwegian and European funds, we’ve developed a new and modern intelligent public lighting system, allowing us to forever get rid of those unsightly and everlasting cables on poles, which have mostly been moved underground, regardless of their ownership.

Naturally, all these works have started in a logical sequence, and the fi rst interventions were made underground, at the water and sewage networks, which, in Bârlad, hadn’t been replaced for over 70 years. Only through these local development directions, Bârlad has attracted tens of millions of euros in the last 6 years.

How would you describe the Municipality of Bârlad from the perspective of attracting investors, considering the infrastructure of medical services, the level of education, and the diversity of cultural facilities available in the city?

All our projects, with the requisite eff orts, have had from the very beginning a clear direction and a well-established course. Everything happened like building a house, where construction occurs in well-defi ned stages, aimed at achieving the desired result: the creation of a home. A house needs trees in the yard, to be close to public health and educational institutions, but also to facilitate access to leisure and cultivation activities for its occupants. That’s how we reconsidered and revitalized the area around “Prodana” recreational lake, established a new recreational park on the site of an abandoned park near “Mihai Eminescu” High School, redesigned the central park of Bârlad, but most importantly, we intervened, with quite a bit of courage, in the total redesign of the dearest place to the people of Bârlad, namely the “Mihail Sturdza” Public Garden.

We have a theater, a museum with many external sections, a renowned library, art galleries, a wonderful zoo garden, an increasingly vibrant cultural scene, and last but not least, a future local Cultural Palace, currently under construction. But until a few years ago, Bârlad did not have a permanent medical center or pharmacies that operated non-stop. Now it does! The “Elena Beldiman” Municipal Emergency Hospital had major funding problems from local sources, but not anymore! On the contrary, patients now have new wards, all with new oxygen sources, benefit from new, high-performance equipment, and these days work is underway on the construction of a very generous extension of the Specialty Outpatient Clinic.

Immediately after completing this investment, we will start building a new hospital! News that Bârlad has been waiting for for decades! Just as it waited too long for new nurseries or kindergartens. Now, we have already opened a new nursery and kindergarten, another nursery is under construction, a kindergarten has been modernized and expanded, almost doubling its capacity for educational activities, and another will follow the same path. All schools have new furniture, state-of-the-art teaching materials, and… we don’t stop there, for our children! In addition, the city will soon have its first fully equipped European sports hall. It seems that investors have noticed all these things, and they have now begun to take a closer look at Bârlad.

Efficient collaboration between the public and private sectors can create a conducive environment for investments through the implementation of policies and projects that support sustainable economic development. In this regard, what level of openness do you demonstrate for achieving these collaborations?

I’ve been active for over 20 years in the private sector as a lawyer, and your question hits home for me because I know how important collaborative relationships between the public and private sectors are. Especially since we have a bypass road under construction, which will soon be opened to transit traffic and beyond, and will be connected to the city.

A large shopping center has already kickstarted private investments in Bârlad, in the northern part, which could, we hope, inspire innovative ideas for other investors. Moreover, we’re already working on a Detailed Urban Plan (PUZ) in the area, covering almost 25 hectares, where we’ll later provide significant tax incentives for private investments in production, being in close proximity to the bypass of Bârlad. We also plan a PUZ for the ANL (National Housing Agency) blocks area at Cărămidărie, where the private real estate sector can develop.

Without dwelling on this aspect, I can only say this: whether I’m in the office or elsewhere, I’m fully open to any potential private investor, and I don’t miss any opportunity to talk to them about the minimis aid scheme available to their sector. We offer significant exemptions for anyone investing and creating new jobs in Bârlad. Anyone who doubts it is warmly invited to discuss further!

Diversity in economic sectors can contribute to the economic stability of a locality and attract investors who wish to avoid dependence on a single sector. If that’s the case, please provide a few existing examples or ones you believe could be supported in the future.

A multicultural city like Bârlad cannot be a closed city, focused solely on a particular economic sector. And it won’t be! I say this with full conviction, considering that a new direction of development we want to pursue is towards supporting local producers. From the renowned honey from the area to the cheeses from the highlands of Bârlad, from the aromatic herbs and vegetables harvested directly from the yards of villagers in the vegetable basin of the Bârlad River to the wines from local vineyards, not to mention the famous Moldovan cuisine, all deserve our full attention and can even lead to the significant development of another economically underdeveloped segment locally, namely tourism.

It’s a commitment I’m making for my third term at the helm of the city, as I run at the urging of those who have seen that, after eight years leading the local administration, beautiful things can finally be achieved in Bârlad. Our municipality still needs development projects! We’ve brought over 187 million euros to Bârlad, and we won’t stop there!