The ranking list has been approved! Jarosław will compete for over PLN 80 million.

In July of this year, we reported on the completion of the substantive evaluation conducted by external experts of the initial project proposals submitted in the call for proposals for the Polish-Swiss Urban Development Program. As a result, a ranking list of applications was created and made public (it included 103 positively reviewed proposals, which did not yet constitute funding). The next step was to submit the list for review by the Steering Committee of the Polish-Swiss Urban Development Program, which was to make the final decision regarding the ranking list. This decision was made on August 1st, selecting 19 finalists from among the cities who could count on significant financial support. This group includes: Tarnów, Dębica, Siemianowice Śląskie, Chodzież, Jasło, Grudziądz, Włocławek, Kraśnik, Starachowice, Słupsk, Gniezno, Hrubieszów, Ostrołęka, Kędzierzyn-Koźle, Końskie, Krosno, Hajnówka, Ciechanów, and Jarosław. They face a great challenge and a great opportunity.

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Each of the 19 finalist cities applied for several dozen million złoty for their project – from 51 million to even over 80 million złoty – to guarantee the development of the town and create a better living space, which will help stop unfavorable phenomena, such as the outflow of young people to larger towns.

The range of projects cities want to implement is wide—from investments in public transport, safety, and ecology, through education and entrepreneurship, to support for non-governmental organizations. Jarosław, ranked 18th in the ranking, has chosen the "Come – See – Stay – Jarosław, a City Open to People" project, which aims to improve the quality of life through innovative infrastructure and technology solutions, applying for PLN 80,705,495.35. According to information provided by Mayor Marcin Nazarewicz, the project includes: modernization of street lighting, construction of a bicycle bridge over the San River and pedestrian and bicycle paths, construction of a water supply network and reconstruction of the sewage system on Podgórze Street, improving the energy efficiency of educational buildings, purchasing a modern electric bus, and renovating the building at 1 Tarnowskiego Street to house the District Ballet Center (more on this project in a separate article). In addition, social and educational activities such as: the creation of the "Good Beginning" center by converting the building into a multi-family residential building, the establishment of the Jarosław Center for New Technologies, the launch of a grant program within the Center for Civic Activity, and the organization of a series of music-therapy events for residents.

It's time to complete the project. The deadline is November 17th.

Following a decision by the Steering Committee of the Polish-Swiss Urban Development Program on August 1st, the 19 cities with the highest scores on the ranking list (including Jarosław, which received 88.56 out of 100) were invited to submit Complete Project Proposals (FPPs), detailed applications for funding. They have until November 17th of this year.

Experts from the Association of Polish Cities and Swiss experts will assist cities in preparing their Complete Project Proposals. The complete project proposals will be formally and substantively reassessed, and the final funding amounts in all cities will depend on state aid regulations.

Importantly, cities can obtain...