Part of the 19th-century 'Festung Kraków' fortifications, and home to redoubt Fort 17 'Luneta Grzegórzecka' (for those taking notes), this riverside territory that once protected the vital rail bridge nearby was in the hands of the Polish military and completely sealed off until only recently. In complete neglect - its structures in ruin and overgrown - it wasn't much use to the military, and local residents were increasingly annoyed that the forested area wasn't open to the public (and also obstructed access to the riverside). Obtained by the city, this was prime real estate for developers, but local activists fought like hell to protect it, including plans to build a huge modern music centre here (don't we already have one of those?). After a four-year battle, the city handed the wire cutters over to locals in 2018 and most of the the fencing came down, making this space accessible to all.
Tell me, where do the children play?
As it stands the area still feels off-limits, if not a bit unsafe. The paths are difficult to distinguish and almost impassable at times. The lampposts are broken, there are no benches or bins, only several abandoned, unsecured structures that you enter at your own peril. In summer it is wildly overgrown with brush, and after nightfall it's completely dark to the point that we wouldn't recommend entering. Essentially a place for people to walk their dogs, graffiti artists to go wild, teens to smash bottles, and hobos to be left alone, it's quite amazing to find a place like this in the centre of Kraków, right on the river boulevards, no less. Of course, it can't stay this way for long, and although nothing is being done to clean it up at the moment, there are plans to create a beautiful forest park here in the near future. The potential is huge for connecting this natural space straight down to the river, and though we love wild neglected urban spaces more than most, we might have to agree in this case that whatever the city can do to clean it up and make it safe is for the best.
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