Warsaw's green transformation is not losing momentum. In addition to major renovations, such as the revalorization of Chmielna Street and the construction of the new Central Square, there are also smaller, point changes. The Capital Road Administration has just announced a tender for a contractor for another of them - the greening of the parking lot at Plac Trzech Krzyży.
Not much time has passed since the reconstruction of Warsaw's Trzech Krzyży Square was completed in October 2023. One of the city's most distinctive spaces, important both for its historical landscape, communication and access to public services. The square underwent a thorough modernization - dangerous pedestrian crossings disappeared, new paving and parking lots appeared, and quite a few stately trees were planted, which still grow in the square today. The renovation, which cost the city nearly 18 million zlotys, included, of course, plots belonging to Warsaw. However, there is also quite a lot of private land near the Three Crosses Square, as well as the government building of the Ministry of Development and Technology. The latter has decided to add its own contribution to the positive metamorphosis of Three Crosses Square.
The building of the State Economic Planning Commission in Warsaw - part of the parking lot in front of the building will be greened
Photo: Adrian Grycuk © CC BY-SA 3.0 en
Trees instead of a parking lot in Warsaw
The Ministry of Development and Technology is currently located in the former building of the State Commission for Economic Planning at 3 Trzech Krzyży Square. The monumental edifice is preceded by a sizable parking lot, with 44 spaces currently designated. The concrete plaza, hidden behind a barrier, is not only a space taken away from pedestrians, but also a "red" spot on the map of the city's heat island in the just-renovated square. That is about to change, however, as the ministry has announced that the number of parking spaces on the west side of Three Crosses Square will be cut in half.
community strength
The additional greening of Three Crosses Square is not only due to the goodwill of the Ministry of Development and Technology, but also to the clout of local initiatives. Indeed, the idea to reduce parking spaces in front of the State Economic Planning Commission building came from Jack Welewein, who approached the editorial board of Gazeta Wyborcza with an appeal for help in this matter. As he reported, he had already spoken to one of the deputies and a Downtown district councilwoman about the matter, but it was not possible to proceed to action. The information then went to a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Development and Technology, who gave the good news: the parking lot on Three Crosses Square will be halved, and trees and shrubs will appear instead of parking spaces.
Changes planned on the western side of Warsaw's Plac Trzech Krzyży.
il.: ZDM tender materials
New greenery on Trzech Krzyży Square
The City Roads Administration has already organized a tender seeking a contractor for work on the parking lot in front of the MRiT building. As we read in the tender materials, the contractor will be tasked with transforming the western part of the parking lot in front of the Socialist Realist building. Instead of parking spaces, new greenery will appear there in the form of 10 Dutch linden trees, four magnolias, as well as glossy irises and other perennials. In addition to making the new plantings, the winner of the tender will also undertake to take care of the vegetation for the next three years. Halfway along its length, the green square will be intersected by a small strip of land devoid of plantings, where four new benches will be placed.
Trzech Krzyży Square before and after the 2023 renovation
photo: ZDM Warszawa
What awaits the Three Crosses Square in the Future?
The current form of Trzech Krzyży Square, although significantly refreshed, is not its final form. In the indefinite future, the square is to be transformed into a space that will primarily serve pedestrians and not - as now - vehicular traffic. At this point, as Kacper Kepinski wrote last year, the area around the 19th-century St. Alexander Church resembles a large traffic circle rather than a real square. This is another step that is planned as part of the transformation of the capital, a project branded under the slogan New Center of Warsaw. Given that the renovation of the Three Crosses Square ended not so long ago, however, it can be expected that we will have to wait a little longer for further changes. The story from the Warsaw square, however, offers an important lesson - although public spaces depend primarily on city authorities, their quality consists of the care and goodwill of all residents and institutions.
