Four projects to receive support in this year’s edition of “Sofia chooses” – Sofia Municipality’s programme for ideas from citizens, civil and professional organizations for projects that improve the urban environment. Voting for the projects ended in the middle of March, and the set budget of BGN 1,000,000 can fund a total of 4 projects that gathered the most votes for implementation. The submitted proposals are related to green mobility, a river promenade and alley near the Lion’s Bridge, reconstruction of park spaces, and public areas. A total of 7105 residents of Sofia took part in the second edition of the Programme by having their say on 34 project proposals on green topics worth up to BGN 1 million and are eligible to become part of Sofia Municipality’s investment programme for 2022. The four most voted projects have a total budget of just over BGN 893,000, and the remaining BGN 106,971 will be set aside by the Municipality as a reserve for implementing the ranked projects.
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This spring begins the afforestation of a new forest near Sofia. The new area is near the village of Negovan, Novi Iskar. Some 86,000 trees will be planted on an area of 137 decares. The aim is to restore the riverside forests lost in the area. The initiative is part of the “New Forest of Sofia” project, by which the Sofia Municipality has been planting new forests in the suburbs for several years already as part of the efforts to improve air quality. The project started with the terrain near Suhodol, which is already afforested with acacias and lindens on an area of 225 decares.
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The first new-generation innovative school in Bulgaria with a focus on natural sciences, digital technologies, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) to open its doors in Sofia. It will be situated in the building of the children’s center “Muzeiko”, which will continue to operate as an interactive children’s science center during the weekends and after the school classes on weekdays. Partners in the project are the America for Bulgaria Foundation, which provides the Muzeiko Children’s Center building, and the University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy in Sofia, which provides an additional building allowing more study space along with a teacher training center.
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The construction of the new section of the metro has started, comprising 3 km from Poduyane to the Levski G district. The construction of the route is planned for the next three years. After its commissioning, another 40 thousand Sofia residents will have daily access to the metro network in the city, and the total length of the three metro lines will be 55 km with 50 metro stations. Sofia Municipality also announced that 30 new low-floor trolleybuses and 30 new fast-charging electric buses will be added to the ground public transport. Yet another piece of news from Sofia’s public transport – “Transport and Urban Mobility” at the Sofia Municipality in collaboration with the National Center of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases is testing UVC devices for air disinfection in public transport. The test results so far have shown that the installed devices in test tram-trains effectively reduce the microflora in the air by up to 80%.
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Shared office space in Sofia has reached 45,580 sq.m., according to Suѕhmаn & Wаkеfіеld Fоrtоn. Another 2,500 square meters are expected in April, with 250 desks in the MuFlex project in Megapapk’s building on Tsarigradsko Shosse Blvd. According to the consulting company, two-thirds of the new tenants in the city are interested in flexible office solutions – a more and more distinct trend since the hybrid work model has emerged as the dominant return-to-work approach.
The consulting company also reports that almost 75% of the existing at the beginning of the year companies are located outside the city center. According to the flexible workplace management company OffіseRnD, 84% of the areas offered by their clients are private offices. Technology companies with larger teams prefer flexible office spaces located along the main boulevards outside the city center, while freelancers, small advertising agencies and consulting companies prefer shared workspaces in the city center.