General development plan of Sochi completed, public is dissatisfied

Today Sochi has hosted a presentation of the completed city general development plan. Prior to send the general plan for coordination to the Administration of the Krasnodar Territory, the authors presented their work to the Public Town-Planning Board of Sochi.

"We've done our work. Now you, Sochi residents, should do yours. Nobody else can put the city into order", said Igor Schneider, director of the "Hyprogor" Russian Institute of Town-Planning and Investment Development, while presenting the plan.

"I wouldn't like you to perceive our general plan as just a development programme of Sochi for the needs of the Olympiad. The Games are an important, but still an episode in city's advance towards the level of the cities and territories of global significance", Mr Schneider has noted.

In his turn, Yuri Lvov, a well- known Sochi architect, has expressed his regret that "Sochi is ruined". He has stated that the city fell victim of the massive commercialization and disorderly development for 20 years. Mr Lvov has drawn attention to the fact that Sochi has no cinemas; the city has no sea quay, beaches are fenced, it is overcrowded with traffic and built up with commercial "sky-scrapers" with apartments for sale.