In December 2021, an agreement nr 8/2021/RLwas signed between the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policy and the Municipality of Piła for the financing of the project “City of Piła with new energy!” under the Programme “Local Development”, on the basis of which the city will receive more than 15 million PLN of support from the Norwegian Funds for the implementation of the project.
Development Plan of Piła – City of Piła with new energy! is a multi-sector, comprehensive and integrated strategic program of socio-economic development, covering the key dimensions of the city’s development: social, economic, environmental, spatial, financing of city development and intelligent development management. New Development Path for the city of Piła.
We decided to base our New Development Path primarily on the pursuit of sustainable development and accessibility for All.
The city’s strengths, such as, among others, the appropriate knowledge of research and development centres operating in the city, developing human resources based on universities, secondary and industry schools, modern business functioning in the city, as well as our passion, which we have been consistently building for the last few years in a network of cooperation on a national and international scale are to help create the right environment for the implementation of ‘City of Piła with new energy!’ project.
The solutions we have developed constitute a broad expansion of the provisions contained in the strategic documents in force in the city so far, in particular the Development Strategy of the city of Piła until 2035. We create a New Development Path, in which, however, we do not forget about previously gained experiences. At the same time, we want to implement what is so important to us sustainable development goals formulated by the United Nations, including, above all, the following postulates: Good health and quality of life, Clean and accessible energy, Economic growth and decent work, Innovation, Industry and Infrastructure, Sustainable cities and communities, as well as Partnership in the implementaion of our goals.
The Action Plan is closely related to the Development Plan, in which we have set goals and actions to ensure institutional coping with the challenges of the New Development Path for the city of Piła, including by increasing our competences, and thus improving the services offered by the city of Piła, and by increasing the openness, clarity and transparency of our work.
In response to the diagnosed problems, as well as with the intention to use the potential of the city, in the Development Plan, we formulated development goals that create a New Development Path for the city of Piła.
We want to support and initiate social and cultural activity of Piła residents of various age groups, as well as building the identity of place and origin. Thanks to this, we hope to eliminate the low level of identification with the city, using such strengths as: high social activity and rich cultural life, as well as good social infrastructure. We also want to include and support the functioning of socially and economically marginalized groups or those at risk of marginalization, including the elderly and people with disabilities. As a result, we want to improve the financial situation of the inhabitants and help them find well-paid jobs, especially for young and well-educated people.
We also want, based on extensive experience in this regard, support the further development of the research and development base in the subregion in aviation and aerospace sectors. We assume supporting innovative economic and professional activity of Piła residents from various social groups.
We plan activities promoting an attractive recreational offer, based on the potential of the city and its functional area. In this way, we want to eliminate the loss of inhabitants associated with the negative population growth and negative migration balance, using the high natural values of the city, but also the experiences related to the progressive integration of the city with the communes of the functional area. In this way, we hope to achieve a sustainable and coherent territorial development of Piła and the functional area of the city in the environmental, social and economic dimensions. We want to further develop our competences through the exchange of experiences and good practices in intersectoral and inter-local governmental cooperation (domestic and foreign).
The project is the basis for the implementation of the new development policy. The project will have many effects that will help to solve the problems:
– Economic activation, organization of events in the field of vocational education will allow young people to adapt to the professional challenges associated the New Dev. Path, encourage them to start their own businesses or develop professionally, thus they will improve the relatively bad financial situation of residents and shortages in the labor market (especially of highly qualified people).
– Social activation integration, ecological, educational and cultural events carried out in modernized or retrofitted centers, including the Center for Activation of Older and Disabled People, the Piła Institute for Integration and Education and the Regional Cultural Center, will build intergenerational relations, environ/ and social awareness of residents, increase the level of local identity, and will became a form of support for excluded groups and with disabilities.
– Activation of the post-military potential of the airport (Base simulating space missions, Aviation Education Center), combined with educational and research activities, protection of cultural heritage, which will accelerate the city revitalization process.
– New domestic and foreign partnerships (inc. with represent. of Donor States) that will enable the exchange of experiences and good practices, building new connections, teaching tolerance, openness and respect for otherness.
– Effective public administration, transparent, open to cooperation with residents and encouraging them to participate in decision-making processes regarding local issues, due to the investment and non-investment activities carried out under AP.
The project activities will have a positive impact on the sustainable development policy.
The project is designed to prevent all forms of discrimination based on sex, race, ethnicity, religion, beliefs, disability, age, sexual orientation during the preparation and implementation process. All the elements of the project will be accessible to each citizien. The created infrastructure will be designed by taking the concept of universal design into account, using rational improvements to ensure accessibility of the infrastructure for everyone, including children, people with reduced mobility and people with special needs.
The project will be conducted through an extensive national partnership which is an indispensable condition for the successful implementation of such a large and multithematic project. The City Council of Piła, expressing the will to implement the project, authorized the Mayor of Piła to include the local community, domestic and foreign partners, and other local governments in the project. The project partners will also be municipal units and entities for which the Municipality of Piła is the founding body, and the cooperation does not require formalization in the form of partnership agreements.
The partners can be divided into several groups, depending on the planned areas of joint actions, although to a large extent, they overlap and complement each other:
– integration of local communities, building cohesion, sustainable territorial develop.: local government units of the functional area of the city of Piła, communes: Szydłowo, Krajenka, Trzcianka, Ujście, Wysoka;
– the area of social assistance, including assistance for people with disabilities: Krok Po Kroku HAS Association; Union of Associations PBŻ, Municipal Social Welfare Center, Municipal Police; “Nowe Horyzonty” Social Coop., Humanitarian Aid Association in Piła,
– support and activation of seniors: Pro-Senior Association, Nadnotecki University of the Third Age, European Initiatives Civic Association,
– activation of the labor market, especially young people, education: Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, St. Staszic State University, Chamber of Commerce of Northern Greater Poland,
– activation of the local community, identity and cultural heritage: Regional Cultural Center – Fabryka Emocji, ROZWOJOWI.PL Association.
The partners will be co-implementers of projects, giving substantive support adjusted to the specificity of undertakings, providing space for the implementation of projects, as well as promoting and informing about ongoing projects.
All partners participated in the following stages of Project drafting. Their organizational and human resources, and experience guarantee the full implementation of the project and the continuation of joint activities after its completion.