Could you fall in love with a Frankenstein?

Our round table participants all have some kind of  a link with Warsaw: they were born, work or live here, and its growth and development is of great importance to all of them. They look upon Warsaw as they look at their mothers: they can see her faults, but they love her just the same

Emil Górecki, ‘Eurobuild CEE’: The ‘Mercers Consulting’ city ranking by quality of living puts Central and Eastern European cities far down the table. Prague 71st, with Budapest, Vilnius and Ljubljana even further down. Warsaw is 85th. These are not rankings decided solely by architecture and city planning. What do you think? Would you say that Warsaw is a pleasant, friendly city for its residents?

Sławomir Gzell, Warsaw University of Technology: Each such study can be criticized, although it is worth considering why Warsaw is well below where we would want it be. Personally, I feel that Warsaw has something I would call an energizing force: leaving the main railway station you feel like you are standing in front of a station in New York: the bustle is immense… anything could happen here. Unfortunately, cities such as Prague beat Warsaw in terms of what is called the ‘built environment’. The renovation of old tenements, buildings which aren’t lacking here, are almost all finished in Prague. The fact is that a development in a specific place has to fit in with its immediate environment. For example, a large shopping centre was constructed in Prague’s Smíchov district, in the centre of an area bounded by tenement blocks in a way that hides the centre from view. New offices and restaurants have begun to spring up around it. The way the shopping centre “attacked” this district has given it a new start, and the whole area is now being improved. Returning to Warsaw, the result of a competition to develop the Vistula river-front was recently decided, in what was an admirable, far-sighted and well thought-out move on the part of the authorities. This sector of the city has had a reputation as something of a place for run-down bars selling cheap beer, but this project will mean whole families will have something to do in a potentially pleasant area and will want to visit it regularly. And projects such as the Copernicus Science Centre will soon open there, where people can go to enjoy themselves and learn something new as well. I can see a lot of positive changes in our city. And in reply to your question: is Warsaw a pleasant place to live in, I would say yes.

Ewa Andrzejewska, ‘Eurobuild CEE’: But does that mean your life is pleasant in Warsaw?

Sławomir Gzell: I like leaving Warsaw, but only on holiday. I return eagerly and everything I need is here. I don’t feel fenced in by the city. For example, I can easily get on a train and go to Berlin for a day or two.

Jakub Szczęsny, Centrala Designers’ Task Force: It is because of this that Varsovians are becoming more open to international thinking. I recently met several officials responsible for cultural policy in a number of Warsaw districts. We talked about developing the cultural infrastructures of their respective communities, for example, in terms of museums, art galleries etc. During the meeting I noticed they began to reference examples they had seen in other European countries and had admired; and, in addition, how they wanted to introduce such ideas to their own city. It is great that Warsaw officials are now thinking in the same way as their Barcelona or Paris counterparts.

Tomasz Zemła, Warsaw city council’s bureau of architecture and spatial planning: An excellent, practical way of judging whether a city is good to live in is its size and attractiveness. Paris, London and Moscow lead the field in Europe, but are they all that great? I really don’t know. Statistics and reports don’t tell the whole truth. A large city has a lot of energy: it takes much from its residents but also gives them much; it attracts and rejects. Is Warsaw a good place to live in? Perhaps it’s not all that good, since the city, due to its size, also loses something, but it also provides many things which are unavailable elsewhere in Poland. That is why it is so attractive. Is it good to live in? Just ask those who flock here.

Olgierd Jagiełło, JEMS Architekci: ….. or those who invest here!

Tomasz Zemła: The rate at which things happen here is incredible, like in Moscow and London. The number of attractions is smaller but the city council is trying its best to improve things.

Ewa Andrzejewska: But do you like it here? I’m asking you as a Varsovian and not as a city official.

Tomasz Zemła: The highest quality of architecture in Poland, as well as the quality of public space, access to science and culture … Yes, I like it.

Olgierd Jagiełło: Poland’s most prosperous city, the best place to do business.

Sławomir Gzell: The largest variety of environments you can imagine can be found here. You can walk around the city any evening and find many groups of different types of people. It’s easy to get around, no matter whether you are sixty or twenty.

Dariusz Malinowski, Pleneria: The reason is the city’s social blend, something we have in Warsaw to an unprecedented extent. Most of the population are immigrants, who retain contact with their town of origin in different ways. The diverse nature of its architecture is another characteristic feature. I have a Varsovian acquaintance who once told me that for her Warsaw is like a mother; you don’t choose her but can only love her.

Anatol Kuczyński, Mazowiecka Regional Chamber of Architects: Whenever I walk around Warsaw and compare it with other cities I see it as a city full of empty space. Were I an investor with unlimited investment possibilities, Warsaw to me would be an ideal place. I see places where an in-fill could be inserted, an absent building, at almost every step. Within a 2 km square area in Warsaw’s city centre, you could erect twice as many buildings than already exist and the city would still be worth living in. But there would still be unresolved transport issues. Returning to your question about whether Warsaw is a fine place to live, I would say it still isn’t, but it has a great opportunity to become one of the most interesting places in this part of Europe.

Jakub Szczęsny: An important feature of a city is the intensity of its diversity which, in turn defines its value. Warsaw, with Wrocław, is one of two Polish cities where the coefficient is very high and that is reflected in the city’s identity as well as in business. When a company decides to invest in Kraków, its marketing department spares no effort to look for historical connections. The same is true of Warsaw, though here the identity is entirely different. But Warsaw is very gradually approaching the moment when it will recognize its own identity.

Sławomir Gzell: I was in Prague a few weeks ago attending workshops held for students in several Central and Eastern European schools. When asked about Warsaw’s identity, these foreigners were unable to say anything at all about any feature of the city which could constitute its identity. That must be a cause for some concern. What is missing twenty years after the collapse of communism? A city’s identity resides in its town planning structures and architecture, such as, for instance, it does in Kraków or Wrocław. The question which also arises is how to construct such an identity so as to be able to show a potential investor what Warsaw really is.

Dariusz Malinowski: Just as it is in a business, a city has to shape its own image. It is not constructed by