The entrepreneurial zone Bodulovo covers an area of 20,000 sq. m and is divided into nine plots, six of them have already been sold, and for the remaining three plots, there is plan to publish a public tender for sale in early September.
The entrepreneurial zone Bodulovo is an infrastructure project promoted by the City of Rijeka, aimed at widening the infrastructure support system for small and medium-sized entrepreneurs by establishing a functional and operational business zone. The goal is to increase the competitiveness of existing small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, increase the number of newly set up companies, and enable new investments, while increasing employment.
Work on the realisation of the project lasted 36 months, and now the project closing conference was held, attended, among others, by the mayor of Rijeka Marko Filipović and his associates, representatives of the companies that bought the plots in this entrepreneurial zone, and representatives of the Central Finance and Contracting Agency.
Closing conference of the EU project
According to Mayor Filipović, the goal of this project was to improve business and entrepreneurial infrastructure in the area of the city of Rijeka. “The development of entrepreneurial infrastructure, i.e. the creation of better preconditions for the development of entrepreneurship, is among important principles during my term of office, and I believe that the representatives of the companies that have already bought the plots will soon start to work. This project will indirectly have an impact on the creation of new jobs in the city. “As much as possible, we will consider the possibilities of further expansion of the zone, as well as the possibility of building such entrepreneurial zones in other locations, also with the help of European funds and the relevant Ministry”, said Filipović.
The companies that obtained the right to purchase building plots at auctions are mostly based in Rijeka or in the vicinity of Rijeka and are engaged in the processing industry or they are engaged in the field of professional scientific and technical activities, engineering, design and technical consulting and similar activities.
Out of the nine plots offered, six were sold through oral bidding, and all were auctioned at a significantly higher price than the starting price.
The tender for the remaining three parcels is planned to be published on 7 September 2022, following the principle of closed offers.
After the preparation of the terrain, funds for the development of utility infrastructure are provided through the EU project
SRĐAN ŠKUNCA, JANA SERTIĆ AND MARKO FILIPOVIĆ
About HRK 8 million of budgetary funds were invested in the preparation of the terrain. In 2017, we applied the project to the competition published by the Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Crafts titled ‘Development of infrastructure of entrepreneurial zones’. A grant agreement was signed in June 2019, according to which the total project value amounted to HRK 11,258,233.00, of which HRK 5,710,343.18 was granted by the EU under the European Structural Funds – the European Fund for Regional Development through Operational programme ‘Competitiveness and cohesion’. The remaining funds for co-financing the project were provided by the City of Rijeka.
In December 2020, we applied the project to the Public Invitation for Co-financing the implementation of EU projects at regional and local level for 2020, and in November 2021, the Agreement on Co-financing the Implementation of EU Projects was signed with the Ministry of Regional Development and EU Funds for approved grants in the amount of HRK 2,336,049.49. Accordingly, over HRK 8 million have been drawn down by the City of Rijeka from EU funds for the project Entrepreneurial zone Bodulovo.
