POLAND - Construction of a new Krakow exhibition and conference venue is being held up by bureaucracy in the municipal government, according to a local exhibition organiser and venue operator.
A 28,000sqm venue, under the working title of Cracovia Expo, is in the final stages of planning but needs permission from the city before going ahead. However, permission is being denied to operator and event organiser Targi w Krakowie (TK) because of a disagreement over who will pay for new roads.
The venue will be the first co-located exhibition hall and conference centre in Krakow, with an 18,000sqm exhibition space and 1,600-seat auditorium.
“Getting the proper permission is a bigger problem than actually building the venue,”said Pawel NikliÅ„ski, vice-president of TK. He added that TK continuously turns away business because Krakow lacks the proper facilities.
According to Nikliński, TK is willing to pay for all the on-site roads, but the government is asking them to foot the bill for local connecting roads as well.
“The problem will be solved as soon as the city says it will build the roads. If they say to us that we must build the roads and we say no, then they will not give us permission,” he said. “The problem in my opinion is a very big bureaucracy. The main politician can say yes, but someone in an office says no. People in the offices decide, not the politicians.”
Earlier this year, international exhibition organiser Haymarket pulled out of a Polish joint venture with Montgomery Polska.
