In recent years Bratislava, the capital if Slovakia, has become a laboratory for the country. Here the viability of the entire economy and society are being tested. And, as so often happens in a laboratory, no one is entirely certain how the experiment will turn on.

The banks on the Danube

Bratislava is a city on the Danube. But even at the beginning of the 20th century the river was regarded more as a danger for the city. The undeveloped and even unused banks of the Danube today represent one of the greatest areas of potential for the urban development of Bratislava. A few hundred meters upstream, to the west of the historic center, a new multi-functional development, called River Park, is growing up. The famous Dutch architect Eric van Egeraat designed a dense structure of offices and luxury apartments for the site.
The area of the old Danube port is also being developed. The intention is to create a new center of social life there. The national theatre (M. Kusý, P. Paňák, 2007) represents one of the first buildings erected as part of this major project.
The area below the castle, pleasantly located on the Danube, is still awaiting redevelopment. In Autumn 2007 the third international competition for this development was held. What the outcome will be like and whether this scar will finally be removed from the face of the city remains to be seen.

High-rise buildings

When the first more recent high-rise building in Bratislava, the headquarters of the VUB Bank (J. Bahna, Ľ. Závodný, M. Juráni, I. Palčo), was erected in 1996, nobody could knew that this type would become one of this most popular in Bratislava at the start of the 21st century. In 2002 the headquarters of the Slovak National Bank with height of 111 meters (M. Kusý. P. Paňák) was completed and in the following years further high-rise offices buildings- and even apartment blocks – were erected. However the investor’s enthusiasm for high-rise buildings is, not always shared by the public and the city representatives. However the pressure from the investors is stronger than the intention to create a concept for the construction of high-rise buildings.

Housing

In Bratislava at present housing is the fastest-growing sector of the construction industry. Ten years ago more than 50% of the urban population lived in prefabricated panel housing estates. Today hundreds of new apartments are being built. One of the best examples of planning that shows an urban awareness is the Rozadol housing complex (P. Moravčík, J. Šujan, 2007). But also smaller projects – such as Octopus Habitat (P. Sticzay, 2007) or the Zlatá noha/Golden Leg complex (J. Hantabal, M. Frecer, 2007) – offer residents a better standard of housing and give the city a new urban quality.
The reality of recent years means for Bratislava above all that investors are exerting considerable pressure. Unfortunately few of them show any sensitivity for the special characteristics and traditions of the city. Generally speaking the local authorities are ill prepared to meet this pressure by presenting clear concepts about spatial planning, urban development and architecture. Yet on the other hand all of this makes the experiment even more exciting.