KIROV, August 5. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin criticized local officials who disregard residents’ views concerning urban redevelopment, he told a meeting of the Council for the Local Self-Government Development on Saturday.
"One of the key directions requiring the closest collaboration between residents and local authorities is [urban] redevelopment," he said.
"This condition [to consider the people’s opinions for implementation of redevelopment projects - TASS] has not been viewed as mandatory everywhere," Putin said. "Some have decided that they can brush off residents’ opinions by their imitation, hence showing evident disrespect to citizens, even neglect."
"This bureaucratic attitude will definitely bring about nothing, in respect to both the redevelopment and citizens’ trust," Putin said.
The government has begun implementing the federal project on forming comfortable urban environment and allocated 25 billion rubles ($416,872 million) for the purpose in the current year, he said.
"When we launched the project, residents’ involvement was a principal condition in defining priorities in redevelopment," Putin said. "Curtilages, parks, public spaces should be refurbished, certainly, with account of local residents’ views, and in the way people really need it, but not in the way convenient for those who organize the work."
The president recalled this issue was included in his state-of-the-nation address to the both parliamentary houses in December 2016.
Nonetheless, "quite the opposite result can be seen in those municipalities, where residents are engaged in redevelopment work," he said.
"Really modern environment is formed here along with people’s careful and responsible attitude to their yards, streets, towns and cities," Putin said.