This is good news for residents. Łódź will unveil the rivers flowing underground! The city has just announced that it will create rest areas on several sections of the Ner and Łódka rivers.
A city’s river is a factor that determines its appearance. Warsaw or Krakow have the Vistula. The Warta flows through Poznań, while the Oder flows through Wrocław. Łódź lacks the water by which to create places for recreation with boulevards and walking trails. Obviously, no one is going to change the geography and no one is going to make a few metres wide river flow through the centre of Łódź, but even uncovering a small part of it may have a positive impact on the perception of the city itself.
Many people don’t realise that there are many rivers within Łódź. However, they have been hidden underground. A map of the rivers is published below. Now Łódź officials have announced plans for several of them. They want to uncover parts of them and make them an attractive place to relax. Previously, we wrote about a project that will unveil the Lamus River. You can find an article on this by clicking HERE.
Now a project related to the Ner River and the Łódka River has been published. The Ner is the largest river in Łódź, its source is at Mileszki (eastern part of Łódź). The river flows at the level of Kolumny Street and further to the south-west. Another section of it runs outside the city limits. Then the winding riverbed returns to Łódź at Stawy Stefańskiego, from where it meanders through Ruda Pabianicka, Chocianowice, Łaskowice and Lublinek. Eventually, the river flows into the Warta.
The project involves a new arrangement of two sections of the Ner. From the Stefański Ponds to the point where the Ner joins the River Jasień. It is planned to clean the riverbed and build a path for pedestrians and cyclists. Residents will be able to relax in the clearings, where benches and litter bins will appear.
The next river to be reclaimed by residents will be the Łódka.
The history of the city began on its banks – it was here that the settlement that gave rise to Łódź was founded in the 13th century. The Łódka has its source in Sikawa. It meanders through almost the entire city, eventually flowing into the Ner River, already outside Łódź. It creates picturesque valleys – for example by the Academy of Fine Arts or in Survivors’ Park. For sanitary reasons, in the 19th century it was partially hidden in the canal,” reads łódź.pl.
Today, the river is hidden underground in the Helenów Park and the Old Town Park. The river returns to the surface in Park na Zdrowiu and continues to flow towards Brus. The draft changes concern the section from Konstantynowska Street to the borders of Łódź. The concrete troughs will be removed and new plants will be planted. Here, too, footpaths for pedestrians and cyclists and bridges will appear along the river. In a poll posted on the łódź.pl website, as many as 95 per cent of internet users said that it was a good idea for the city to reclaim the rivers. Let’s hope that the people of Łódź gain beautiful places to relax among nature.
source: UM Łódź(www.lodz.pl)
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River Ner, visualisation of the site arrangement:
River Łódka, visualisation of site arrangement:
