Page 176 - Proceeding 2015
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FAMP                POPESCU Ruxandra-Irina, CORBO? Răzvan-Andrei and MINA-RAIU Laura
                CCASP     STUDY ON THE CONTRIBUTION OF EUROPEAN FUNDS FINANCED PROJECTS TO URBAN
                                                     DEVELOPMENT



            (2)  in 2010 it was the winner of the competition “Seven miracles of EU funds”, organized by the

               Polish Ministry of Regional Development;

            (3)  The EUROCITIES 2011 cooperation award;

            (4)  In 2013, the project was among the 27 finalists chosen by the RegioStars  jury, out of 149
                                                                             7
               projects that entered the competition, being selected in the CITYSTAR category: approaches to
               sustainable  urban  development,  along  with  4  other  projects  from  different  cities  (European
               Commission, 2013b).


        Currently, Mill Island represents a true support center for urban development for the entire city.

        CONCLUSION


        In order to bring long-term benefits, urban projects that are financed from European funds should: (1)

        meet the development needs of both the organizations that implement them, as well as the cities and
        even the regions, and (2) solve the problems that each area faces.

        Starting from the analysis of the two successful projects from Spain and Poland, the cities from Romania  PROCEEDINGS OF THE 11 TH  ADMINISTRATION AND PUBLIC MANAGEMENT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE  ”Strategic Management for Local Communities”  30 th  – 31 st  October 2015   Bucharest

        should start acting. Thus, the Romanian cities have at their disposal, in order to access the European
        Structural and Investment Funds, Priority Axis 4 - dedicated to Supporting sustainable urban development
        within the Regional operational program (ROP) 2014-2020 (Regio, 2015). The available budget is 1.38

        billion EUR (17.88% of the funds allocated to POR 2014-2020). The projects can be diverse and relate,
        mainly, to: (1) urban transportation; (2) buildings for educational, cultural and recreational activities; green

        areas, public squares or urban streets; (3) revitalizing urban areas and (4) educational infrastructure
        (Regio, 2015).

        The projects that could be accomplished by Romanian urban areas by 2020 could contribute (as in the

        case  of  Bydgoszcz,  Malaga)  to  the  increase  of  the  economic  competitiveness  (by  supporting  the
        development of the business environment), to improvement of the living conditions of local communities
        (through the development of infrastructure and services), and also to the sustainable development of

        cities, which will become able to manage their resources effectively and to pursue their potential for
        innovation and the uptake of technological progress.




        7  The main objective of the RegioStars awards is to find best practices in urban and regional development, and bring
        into attention original projects, or programs, from different European countries, which may be appealing and may
        represent a successful model for other cities and regions. These prizes are awarded annually by the European
        Commission since 2009 (European Commission, 2013b).


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