Grmovac
Encyclopedia
Grmovac
is an suburban settlement of Belgrade
, the capital of Serbia
. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun
.
, which is 3 km away and to which it makes no urban connection, near the Belgrade-Zagreb highway and the village of Dobanovci
in the neighboring municipality of Surčin
.
and headed by Vojislav Šešelj
) decided to sell empty lots on a barren meadow to the refugees from Croatia
which were forced out after the Operation Storm
in 1995. Prices were low and many people bought the land (some 3,000 lots which still brought significant income to the municipality) not paying attention that the area was not designated for urban development and the lack of any infrastructure.
Year 2006 brought some changes. Accessible road to the settlement has been paved with asphalt, a bus line to connect Grmovac to Belgrade and electricity were introduced and a construction of a church began. Electricity was supposed to be introduced in December 2006 on a temporary basis for 6 months from 'humanitarian reasons' as the entire settlement is classified as an illegal one, but was postponed until February 2007. However, city government accepted to make a regulatory plan for Grmovac until December 2007 so that settlement could develop further. The plan proposes complete urban and communal infrastructure to be finished in 3 years. Urban shaping continued with the construction of a new church, dedicated to the prophet Elijah, began in summer 2007.
The settlement remains the subject of a dispute between the Radical's municipal government (claiming that city government is not doing anything to make life easier for the Grmovac population) and Belgrade city government which claims that municipal government had no rights to sell those lots but they did it to take money from the people and thus created a problem.
is an suburban settlement of Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, the capital of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun
Zemun
Zemun is a historical town and one of the 17 municipalities which constitute the City of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia...
.
Location
Grmovac is a sub-neighborhood of UgrinovciUgrinovci
Ugrinovci is a suburban settlement of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Zemun.- Location :...
, which is 3 km away and to which it makes no urban connection, near the Belgrade-Zagreb highway and the village of Dobanovci
Dobanovci
Dobanovci is an suburban neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Surčin....
in the neighboring municipality of Surčin
Surcin
Surčin is a neighborhood of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is the youngest of Belgrade's 17 municipalities, as it split from the municipality of Zemun in 2003. Surčin municipality has 38,695 residents while Surčin town itself has 14,292...
.
History
Origins of Grmovac (Serbian for 'bushy place') date from 1996/7 when the Zemun's municipal leadership (ruled by the Serbian Radical PartySerbian Radical Party
The Serbian Radical Party is a far-right Serbian nationalist political party in Serbia, founded in 1991. Currently the second-largest party in the Serbian National Assembly, it has branches in three of the nations that currently border Serbia – all former federal republics of Yugoslavia...
and headed by Vojislav Šešelj
Vojislav Šešelj
Vojislav Šešelj, JD is a Serbian politician, writer and lawyer. He is the founder and president of the Serbian Radical Party and was vice-president of Serbia between 1998 and 2000...
) decided to sell empty lots on a barren meadow to the refugees from Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
which were forced out after the Operation Storm
Operation Storm
Operation Storm is the code name given to a large-scale military operation carried out by Croatian Armed Forces, in conjunction with the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, to gain back control of parts of Croatia which had been claimed by separatist ethnic Serbs, since early...
in 1995. Prices were low and many people bought the land (some 3,000 lots which still brought significant income to the municipality) not paying attention that the area was not designated for urban development and the lack of any infrastructure.
Characteristics
The city government considers the settlement a 'wild' one as it was built without any permits or plans. The total lack of infrastructure (including not just schools, ambulances or kindergartens, but such basic things like running water, grocery stores, pavement or electricity) prevented the settlement from any major growth. Out of 3,000 lots, only on 600 there are houses (out of which almost half is not finished). Population varies from 1,500 during summer to 700 during winter when conditions get even harsher.Year 2006 brought some changes. Accessible road to the settlement has been paved with asphalt, a bus line to connect Grmovac to Belgrade and electricity were introduced and a construction of a church began. Electricity was supposed to be introduced in December 2006 on a temporary basis for 6 months from 'humanitarian reasons' as the entire settlement is classified as an illegal one, but was postponed until February 2007. However, city government accepted to make a regulatory plan for Grmovac until December 2007 so that settlement could develop further. The plan proposes complete urban and communal infrastructure to be finished in 3 years. Urban shaping continued with the construction of a new church, dedicated to the prophet Elijah, began in summer 2007.
The settlement remains the subject of a dispute between the Radical's municipal government (claiming that city government is not doing anything to make life easier for the Grmovac population) and Belgrade city government which claims that municipal government had no rights to sell those lots but they did it to take money from the people and thus created a problem.