A ride to the river

It’s difficult not to compare this year's Suits on Bikes ride to the first such city tour held last year. Everyone wanted to see what was to become of such a socially minded event but now I am happy to say that yes, the idea is blossoming, and it’s doing so in an interesting way too. The weather also decided to play its part with balmy autumn sunshine enticing everyone to get on their bikes. Dozens of real estate people poured out of their offices to take to the saddle and enjoy the fresh air of the late afternoon. But they were not alone on the cycle paths that day. Sometimes It seemed that the four groups taking part in the event would disappear among the many other cyclists who had also taken to the streets. But what made our ride more memorable than a cycle home from work was undoubtedly our guides from the Green Masovia association who had arranged stops to discuss urban issues at places that illustrated the problems faced by the city. The topics varied from problems of motorised transport and parking to how large urban quarters should be developed and where retail services should be located.

Each group followed a different route with starting points at the Myhive Crown Point office building at ul. Prosta 70 as well as the Myhive Nimbus Office at Al. Jerozolimskie 98, Rondo 1 at the ONZ roundabout and the Lixa project which is under construction at the corner of ul. Karolkowa and ul. Kasprzaka. Each of the groups was to meet up at Echo Investment’s Browary Warszawskie project as well as at the finish line on the Vistula Boulevards, where everyone could have a bite to eat and a chance to continue the conversation indoors. This was all made possible through the involvement of the sponsors: Immofinanz, CBRE, Knight Frank, Yareal, Echo Investment, EPP and ULI. Those who had come on their own bikes could have the brakes and gears adjusted free of charge by the Open Bicycle Workshop, organised by the Aim High association. The day closed with a panel discussion, which mostly concentrated on the problems of Warsaw’s Wola district – will it become another ‘Mordor’ [as Służewiec district is now commonly called] due to the breakneck pace of its development? The panellists didn’t think so and instead foresaw a rather rosier future. Both the developers and activists on the panel seemed to agree on this point. The panellists included Konrad Płochocki, the general director of the Polish Association of Developers, Michał Gerwat, the project director of Browary Warszawskie, sociologist Krzysztof Gubański and Robert Buciak of Green Masovia. The rest of the evening was spent gazing at the calming waters of the Vistula flowing by and at the wild banks across on the eastern side of the river. In such a place it seemed impossible not to think that despite Wola being such a vibrant place to live in and with so many attractions and things to do, it will never have such beautiful boulevards and the river will always flow through Warsaw’s district of Powiśle. ν RO