Tirana’s historical identity will be lost, to be replaced, instead, by the personal aesthetic vision of Prime Minister Edi Rama. Tirana mayor Erion Veliaj seems to be working diligently at making this vision a reality, and is not shy about it, taking every opportunity to showcase how well he is fulfilling whatever dreams of Rama’s were interrupted after the latter left the Tirana mayor office. On Blendi Fevziu’s Opinion, speaking of the destruction of the building of the National Theater, Veliaj said:
One of [Rama’s] largest concerns was the case of the National Theater. I had a few concerns of my own, and he had some concerns of his, unfinished business like the interior ring road, the Skënderbeg square.
Similarly, during the unveiling of the new project plan for the Pyramid last week, Veliaj declared that “the Pyramid is the city’s most iconic landmark, whose value we only understood after Edi Rama’s vision.”
The remaining building, an iconic part of the city […] so I thank Edi for the work he did then and for his visionary belief that this property, located perhaps on Tirana’s most expensive area, could have values that few were able to see at the time.
The Pyramid will be redesigned by Dutch architecture firm MRVDV. As was the case with the National Theater, no public consultation or procurement was held was this work paid with tax money.
In 2015, during the inauguration of the Skënderbeg square, Veliaj declared:
I want to thank a good friend of mine, the person that transformed Tirana and was the first to envision the transformation of the Skënderbeg square, who believed in this project and followed it with a passion and energy that became an inspiration for all of us. Tirana, and Albanians, would not have such a beautiful square today without the support, ideas and vision of Edi Rama. Tirana is lucky to have Edi Rama. Albania is lucky to have a Prime Minister that is now doing in every city, what he did to Tirana.
The projects Veliaj mentioned are only a fraction of the unfinished projects Edi Rama left behind in 2011, when he left the Tirana municipality. Now, the same projects are being resurrected by Erion Veliaj.
Additionally, despite adopting a new masterplan for Tirana supervised by Italian architect Stefano Boeri, which was approved on April 4 by the National Territorial Council, it appears that Veliaj will continue the implementation of the so-called “French Plan,” the first masterplan of Tirana drafted under Edi Rama in 2003.
This older masterplan includes projects like:
- Reconstruction of the Skënderbeg Square
- Ten Towers: The TID Tower, designed by 51N4E was opened in 2016; 4EverGreen Tower from Arcea Architetti; the Eyes of Tirana; Tirana International Hotel; the tower behind the Clock Tower; DownTown Tirana; Garden Building on the location of the former Natural Sciences Museum; West-Residence Tower, Bllok Tower.
- Museum for Religious Harmony: The idea returned in 2015 under the project title “Faith Park,” which has remained unfinished.
- Train Station: The renovation of the train station and the square in front of it
- The New Ring Road: Works have restarted in 2016 under Erion Veliaj and completion is expected.
