The Post-Socialist City of Brașov: Challenges and Perils

Abstract

The change of political regimes in the former socialist countries of Central and Eastern Europe at the end of the last century has revalued the building plots in cities and reconfigured the stakes of urban space ownership. Brașov is one of the most attractive cities in Romania, residentially speaking. Nonetheless, the convergence of real estate developers and their direct beneficiaries’ interests raises the risk of choking the city and modifying the characteristic features of its central area. The solution of inadvertently building new real estate in the old and highly valued neighborhoods of the city diminishes the quality of an urban residence.