Yuri Gagarin Street ( / Ulica Jurija Gagarina) is a major street in New Belgrade, named after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space.
The Jurija Gagarina serves as an informal boundary of the north and south Blokovi neighbourhoods of New Belgrade.
Notable features
Delta City, shopping-mall in Block 67 ENJUB Center, in Block 45 "20. oktobar", school in Block 70 Elementary school "Užička republika", in Block 62 Elementary school "Branko Radičević", in Block 45 Pijaca (greenmarket), in Block 44 Piramida (the Pyramide), shopping center in Block 44 "Chinese center (kineski centar)/Blok 70 center", shopping center in Block 70
In May 2022, city administration announced construction of the large Chinese shopping mall in Block 72. Company "Eurasia Trade Center" purchased two lots (total of ) for 821.2 million dinars (€7 million). It should replace the old Chinese center in Block 70, which was partially damaged in fire in August 2021. The location, in the extension of the Yuri Gagarin Street was originally proposed as the location of the city's new Buvljak (flea market) in 2017. The project includes construction of the extension of the Yuri Gagarin Street.
Yuri Gagarin Monument
In 2017 city administration decided to erect a monument to Gagarin somewhere along the street. On 5 April 2018, without any announcement, a monument appeared close to the shopping center Piramida, with the future date written on it (12 April, day of Gagarin's flight). The monument consisted of the granite plated pedestal and a disproportionally small head of Gagarin in the helmet. The public reaction was overwhelmingly negative and was followed by the uproar in social media and reports in the international news. The Russian ambassador also reacted. Additionally, it turned out that the head is not a work of some sculptor but was produced by some company which sold this same head to several other cities around the world, but there they were placed on the proportional pedestals. On 10 April the head was removed and the demolition of the pedestal began a day later. City ordered the removal of the monument, claiming that they were not informed nor consulted about it and that the proper monument to Gagarin will be built. Local municipality New Belgrade also claimed they knew nothing about it.
Buvljak
Buvljak, Belgrade's largest flea market is located in Jurija Gagarina street. Officially named "Open Trade Center", it was colloquially called Buvljak, a generic short term for that type of markets (Serbian: buvlja pijaca).
Location
The market is located along the north side of the street, stretching to the New Belgrade Railway Station, in the initial section of the street. It occupies the southwest corner of the Block 43. South of Buvljak, across the Yuri Gagarin street, is the neighborhood of Savski Nasip, while the Block 42 on the west separates it from Belville. The market is partially encircled by the above-ground access road to the Ada Bridge, and the adjoining interchange.
History
Buvljak was opened in 1994 and with an area of was the largest such facility in Serbia. For the first year and a half, the marked basically worked only on weekends. In 1997, the row of shops was constructed to follow the rim of the market, while the plateau inside was equipped with 1,000 market stalls. By 1999, due to the Sanctions against Yugoslavia, the flea market accommodated over 300,000 customers during the weekends. A special bus tours were organized from all over Serbia to specifically bring customers to Buvljak. After the Chinese Shopping Mall was opened in the Block 70, the revenues fell by 30–40%. When the construction of the access road to the bridge began, the central plateau was reorganized in 2010 and now has 787 stalls on . Though all sorts of commodities can be found (food, plastic products, car gear and spare parts, consumer electronics, dishes, household items), the most abundant are the stalls with cloths and footwear.
Future
The Block 42 is projected as the location of the future Belgrade's main bus station, so the city's General Urban Plan envisioned the displacement of the market. The section where the market is located at the moment is planned for the shopping mall and a business building, high. Even though the removal was scheduled for 2017 and was later postponed to 2018, the new location of Buvljak is not yet known. Possible sites include areas in other parts of New Belgrade, like those just south across the Yuri Gagarin street (Savski Nasip) or at the westernmost section of the municipality, in the neighborhood of Dr Ivan Ribar. Also, sections of other municipalities, like Zemun or Voždovac, were being considered. New Buvljak is envisioned as the modern retail park, rather than the old style flea market. It should cover an area of , with 1,000 stalls of . All stalls will be mobile, with electricity, and will be closed by the roll up doors. The entire facility will be encircled with the long green wall, while inside it will have wide paved pedestrian paths with green avenues and a covered central square with restaurants and coffee shops. On 14 July 2017, mayor of Belgrade Siniša Mali announced that dislocation of the market will not start before 2019 and hinted it will remain on New Belgrade.
In July 2019, city organized bidding for the Buvljak's lot, announcing that the market will be relocated close to the Belgrade's wholesale market Kvantaš (Kvantaška pijaca), also in New Belgrade. New deadline for the relocation was set for "the end of 2020, at the latest". In August 2019 it was announced that the "Kopernikus" company purchased the entire lot in the Block 43, which includes the market, for 2.36 billion dinars (€20 million). The company plans to build the largest business complex in Serbia, including the tallest skyscraper, "Kopernikus Tower". The town has an obligation to relocate the market, which will have to do until 2021, confirming that the old market won't be demolished until the new one is built. This was one in the series of the dubious transactions regarding "Kopernikus", which included dealings with the state owned Telekom Srbija, selling of Kopernikus cable network and purchase of the TV stations O2 (former B92) and Prva Srpska Televizija, both of which became ardently pro-government after the purchase. The company is owned by two brothers, Srđan and Zvezdan Milovanović, and connected to the government and the ruling party, as the latter is a senior member of the Serbian Progressive Party.
In March 2020, city decided to relocate the Buvljak to corner of Marka Čelebonovića and Balanička (thoroughfare T6). It will be right north of the New Bežanija Cemetery (across the Marka Čelebonovića) and east of the Kvantaš (across the Balanička). The area was already declared the Business Zone Auto-Put (Motorway). The relocation is planned for 2021. New location is deemed too distant, badly connected (only one line of public transportation) and was even compared to the future pet cemetery which is closer to the city. In December 2021, construction of the new market was announced for 2022, and complete relocation was to be finished in 2023.
In March 2023, mayor Aleksandar Šapić said that the market will be relocated much further, but on the opposite side, in the neighborhood of Miljakovac. Selected location used to be a farmers' market from 1994 to 1999. Location in Bežanija was put on hold due to the major problems with parcels ownership but remains as an option when the legal problems are solved. Deadline for the finished works in Miljakovac was set for the late October 2023, though the official info-board at the location has a deadline set for December 2024.
Belgrade Central Bus Station Block 42
Western section of Block 42 since 2009 was settled as the informal settlement colloquially named Romville which was, somewhat forcefully, resettled on 26 April 2012.
From then on, in the eastern section of the block, right across the Buvljak, a wild market developed. A section was fenced in 2010, so the market moved to the south, closer to Buvljak. In the fenced area, on the corner of Antifašističke borbe Street and Milutina Milankovića Boulevard, city administration decided to build a tourist attraction, called "Terazije 1930". It was envisioned as the theme park, replica of Belgrade's central square, Terazije during Interbellum. The park was never fully finished, remaining just a bunch of sets, and jokingly nicknamed the "Potemkin park". Even so, 72 million dinars (some 680,000 euros) were spent on the sets, and after the strong public reaction to the reports that the facility is illegally connected to the electric grid, the replica was torn down in 2015. Wild market immediately settled the area, until it was fenced again in 2016. Parking lot in the block, arranged when "Buvljak" was opened in 1994, was closed in August 2016. As intercity tourist buses also used the lot as the parking and terminus for several years, they were banned, too, two months later.
Wild market which remained across "Buvljak" was completely unregulated, had no water or electricity, any order or market stalls as the goods are being sold from the cardboard boxes or directly of the ground. Because of that, and of the growing amount of garbage which surrounds it, the market has been colloquially called "Kolera" ("cholera").Kolera u Beogradu In July 2017 the area was fenced to prevent both the selling on the lot and its usage as the parking lot for cars and buses, due to the impending construction of the bus station. The fencing off had no effect as the lot was soon again turned into the illegal market with piles of garbage, so in October 2017 the ninth operation of cleaning the area in the past 4 years began. It was estimated than in the previous 4 months over of garbage piled on the lot. After cleaning, the lot will be closed again, with regular and communal police patrolling the area.
In May 2019 construction of the NCR Corporation Campus in Block 42 began. The building is planned as the adjoining object to the future bus station. The total floor area is , it will host 4,200 employees and should be finished in 2021.
Transport hub
Bus station New Belgrade was planned by the General Urban Plan (GUP) in 1971, envisioned as one of three new stations. They were to take over the lines from the city's main bus station (BAS) in downtown, which was to be closed. It was to be named BAS West, while the BAS South would be in Autokomanda and BAS North in Viline Vode, near the Pančevo Bridge. Revised GUP in 1985 still predicted all three stations, but none was constructed. Next revision of GUP in 2003 excluded BAS South and North, keeping only BAS West, which was to become the city's central bus station.