A draft law on the preservation and protection of the Old Town of Kuldiga is currently being considered in the Saeima, but business organizations and residents are concerned whether it will burden their businesses and create additional costs. Inese Astasevska, Chairperson of the Kuldiga Municipal Council (Kuldiga Municipality), admits that there will be more talks with the business community and residents. She also sees opportunities for special support programs to help the residents of the Old Town to cope with the financial obligations arising from the new law.

Why was it decided to draft a law to preserve and protect the Old Town of Kuldiga?

The law is necessary to ensure the long-term conservation and management of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Old Town of Kuldiga. This is the main reason why the law is needed. The work on this law started already when the Old Town of Kuldiga was included in the application for the Latvian UNESCO List in 2011. The issue was periodically raised. It is normal practice in the world for such sites to have a special law protecting them at national level.

At the moment, we have a series of laws and regulations and documents that the municipality has drawn up. These are various building regulations and other types of documents that define how to live here, how to preserve and maintain the heritage and pass it on to future generations. But we have to be aware that everything is very fluid and we never know what will happen in 20, 30 or 40 years' time.

We also need to understand that UNESCO status has been acquired by the state, not by the municipality, so it is necessary to approve these documents at national level and to ensure governance so that the state is able to protect the site if any political or other winds start blowing here.

This draft law defines exactly what our tangible and intangible assets are, what the specific conditions are for construction. The conditions are not new and have been in place for years.

Did you also have discussions with citizens and business representatives on this issue before drafting the bill?

Yes. As I said, work on this draft law started quite a long time ago.

This issue has been discussed with various experts, and representatives of the Culture Ministry, the Foreign Ministry, the National Cultural Heritage Board and UNESCO from Latvia were present in the working groups. However, in terms of individual discussions with citizens, there have been no such discussions in the three years that I have been in charge of the council. However, I have never hidden the fact that such discussions are necessary.

The draft law has been shaped and promoted for more than ten years. We also did not know whether the draft law would make it to the parliament or not, because we, as a municipality, cannot submit a draft law ourselves. Now, the draft law has been submitted by the MPs, and I thank them for that. Now it is in the Saeima, it will be examined in committees and in the Saeima in three readings, and this is the moment when we can have discussions, organize them in different formats and at different levels with all the parties involved. That is what we will do. There will probably be proposals for change from our side, from other stakeholders, from partners. This is a normal, democratic process.

Have you read the letter from the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and their vision?

Yes, I have been in contact with them. I have also spoken to one Kuldiga businessman who has been active in giving his opinion and working on development issues in our region. We agree that the law is necessary, but we need to discuss some details.

What are the challenges that entrepreneurs are worried about?

In our discussions, we realized that the most problematic issue would be the issue of expropriation. We see it as a way to preserve property. We need to come to the table, perhaps look at other options to do this. Because as a municipality, we do not have the objective of owning buildings in the Old Town, but it is about the fact that there are buildings with the status of national monuments, but the owners do not or cannot take care of them. The buildings are falling apart. What to do in such situations? We can only watch, because we have no way of influencing private property owners. He pays the increased property tax, he formally complies with everything, but in reality nothing is done. And that is the question of how to deal with these situations?

There are also questions about insurance. There is no complaint here, but we need to understand what the municipality is able to support. Most of the properties in the Old Town are already insured. Studies and risk analyses have shown that the highest risk is fires in the Old Town. Of course, an insurance policy does not eliminate the risk, but if something happens, insurance is an opportunity to restore and invest in the property.

As a municipality, we can go a step further for residents through our binding regulations, such as tax rebates or support programs. If we demand something from the owners of buildings, then we as a municipality can also take a step in return.

How many monuments of national importance are in very poor condition in the Old Town of Kuldiga?

I cannot tell exactly, but it is not as if we have a huge number of them. But there are such, and some of them are quite big and in the center. You have to understand that the whole area of the Old Town is already a monument. There are smaller buildings and larger buildings. So there would also be a discussion about which sites would be covered. Would it apply to all of them, including apartments, or would it apply to large buildings? That is why we need to sit down and have a discussion so that everyone is on the same page, so that the conditions are written very clearly into the law so that there is no room for interpretation over time.

If we talk about the budget for Kuldiga municipality for the next year, what are the priorities?

The budget is, as always, challenging. This will be the fourth budget that I have worked on with my team, and unfortunately every year the main focus is on "save, save and optimize". On the other hand, it pushes us to think much deeper and to analyze.

If at national level they talk all the time about starting from scratch, municipalities cannot do it any other way - we also start from scratch in principle, reviewing everything every year and analyzing every item.

Work on the budget has just started. The major blocks are, of course, outlined and assembled, and work is ongoing. We are working towards the approval of the budget at the end of January at the council meeting. This allows us to see clearly the surplus of the previous year, because then the year is over.

At the moment, we have not yet defined clear priorities, but of course they are outlined. The main priority is the well-being of the residents of our municipality, from which a number of challenges then arise. One of the things that will definitely need more resources is social protection, including in the context of housing and residence. We have entered into a project to build a social home, and we are also participating in a private-public partnership (PPP) housing program.

The increase in social services is high, around 13 percent of the cost of services. Therefore, the social sector is not only a budgetary priority, but it has already objectively become a significant part of the budget.

Education, sport and its infrastructure are a constant priority. As in other municipalities, almost half of the budget goes to education. At the moment, we do not see that it could be otherwise. And it is not just salaries, but this year we have started the design and construction of several sports grounds. We also invest every year in our educational institutions, because it is important that the environment is up-to-date, that children and teachers have everything they need.

And, of course, business support and public infrastructure. We take part in European Union (EU) projects, we receive funding, but the municipality's share of co-financing is also quite high. We invest it in roads, communications, landscaping and cleaning up areas so that entrepreneurs can come and invest.

Also digitization. We will never be able to do everything, because this is an area that is moving forward and developing rapidly, but we are actively following it and we have outlined the processes we want to implement for the coming year. We are planning to allocate a specific part of the budget to digitization.

What changes are foreseeable and urgent in the municipality's school network? Decisions have already been made about the future of the Edole Elementary School and Zigfrids Anna Meierovics’ Kabile Elementary School, are there any other educational institutions in a similar situation?

Yes, we took a decision last month. The decision is not to close the school, but that if the number of pupils does not reach the target within the set time, unfortunately the school will be closed. That is what the staff and parents of the school asked us to do, to be clear about the process.

This is not a spontaneous or sudden decision, because what the analysis of pupil numbers showed earlier is now coming true, the reality is even harsher than two years ago, when the forecasts were more hopeful. Unfortunately, the real numbers are more dramatic today.

I myself come from the education sector, so I value the quality of education very highly. Of course, funding is important, but it is secondary in this situation. The problem is that teaching requires a classroom, requires a certain number of children, the challenge is socializing, teamwork. That is very important. And we are not talking about a class of 30 children; six or eight children in a class is at least enough to provide a wholesome environment where a young person can grow up to be a fully-fledged member of society. If this cannot be ensured, that is the first alarm signal. For example, in Kabile there is a class with one pupil. The two schools have only about 40 pupils each, and it is likely that they will close next year.

The second aspect is the resource of teachers. I certainly do not think that there are bad teachers in rural schools, far from it. But the reality is that teachers often come from the cities, work in several places. Kabile school has been without a headmaster for two years. At the end of the day, we are forced to take a decision because the situation is becoming very dramatic.

Of course, there is also the question of funding. When the funding model changed, we calculated that, in order to maintain this school with such a small number of pupils, the municipality would have to invest a huge amount. We are not able to bear that burden, so this decision had to be taken.

In the school network, we follow the data and reorganize, adapting when necessary. At the moment, I do not see any other schools to think about in the near future. Of course, if we look at what is happening with demographics and birth rates, there will be a point when we have to sit down again and analyze the big picture.

What is the overall situation in the district regarding the supply of teachers?

It is challenging and has never been easy, especially in STEM subjects - physics, chemistry, mathematics. It is clear that we also have a shortage of these teachers, as elsewhere in Latvia.

Does the municipality have programs to offer teachers?

Yes, we have special programs for young professionals, including teachers. We have educators who receive scholarships. Of course, there are conditions for this, because the heads of educational establishments and the municipality have already done everything possible to attract specialists. Young specialists have the opportunity to rent municipal flats.

We try in various ways, even with things that seem mundane to others, such as an insurance policy. We see that the teachers who come from other regions really appreciate it. The same with the professional development we organize. Teachers have the opportunity to improve, to work on methodological materials, to develop themselves. These are the things we offer.

We are also currently working on the rules relating to the criteria for reimbursement of travel expenses. This will also be a bonus and an opportunity.

What is the place and role of Kuldiga Hospital in the new hospital plan? What will you be able to provide, what will be the challenges?

In our case, the new hospital network plan only strengthens our position as a regional hospital. There are nuances to be seen and evaluated, but overall we, as a municipality and as a hospital owner, are pleased with the situation and the place in the plan. It only strengthens us.

In our case, all the services that we currently provide are being maintained. Of course, there are constant challenges. The hospital is trying to take every opportunity to attract external funding, and at the moment it is actively pursuing funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). Unlike other hospitals, where there may be a lack of equipment or infrastructure that needs to be renewed, we are now introducing new services. For example, radiology is now provided by the hospital itself. In the past, this was done by external providers. We feel stable.

Of course, there are daily challenges, such as quotas, remuneration, attracting staff. But the hospital has a lot of resident doctors, new doctors, if I am not mistaken, eight or nine - there have never been so many at the same time.

Half of the patients are residents of our municipality, the other half are from the whole Kurzeme region. I am glad that the Health Ministry and the responsible authorities see this, and the new hospital plan strengthens our position even more.

When it comes to ageing and social services, what are your options for providing these services to all who need them?

This is a very important and challenging question for us too. We see it in the data and we feel it in the budget. It is no secret that the nursing home service is quite expensive. There are no plans to change the prices of social care centers this year or next year. As a municipality, we also contribute by co-financing part of the cost of meals for the residents of our municipality.

If we look at the demand, it is clear that there would be families who would be happy to use a nursing home service but simply cannot afford it. That is why we also have a home care service, which is divided into several levels. There, the municipality co-finances a large part of the costs. This is a service that a family can opt for if the situation is not so serious but the senior needs help. The lowest level is very simple - help with things like firewood, housework once or twice a week. In more severe cases, care for bed-ridden people, where regular attendance is needed. This service is much cheaper than a stay in a nursing home.

Kuldiga Hospital has three social care centers and one Red Cross nursing home in our region. We do not have a waiting list, but we are not empty either - about ten places are available in total. But it should be noted that the municipality already co-finances almost half of the clients' accommodation costs. On average, the municipality pays about EUR 800 per client per month, for a total co-financing of EUR 60,000-80,000 per month from the municipal budget.

All in all, it is a challenging situation, it will be for many years to come, but I would not say that it is worse or better now than it was last year.

We also have a Senior Day Centre in Kuldiga, where seniors with health problems can be looked after during the day and their relatives can go to work. We also have a Support Centre where people with mental health problems can be looked after, educated and receive specialist help. There are also group flats for people with special needs.

Regarding civil protection, you reported that you have seven adapted shelters. What is their current status? Is this not too few?

Of course, seven shelters are far too few. This is only the beginning, and we have to move forward. Clearly, additional funding is needed in this area. That is why we will also be applying to the Norwegian Financial Mechanism programs to attract support. We have already identified potential locations where shelters could be adapted, both in Skrunda, Alsunga and here in Kuldiga, where the basements of buildings could be adapted.

But the most important thing is that we now finally have a clear regulatory basis of what standards shelters need to meet in order to meet a certain level. It was not very clear before, but now everything is put into a specific framework, and that is good.

We have identified quite a lot of places where there is only partial compliance. But partial compliance does not mean that a space is not safe. Maybe the ceiling is 10 centimeters lower, maybe there is no concrete in the floor, maybe there is some other nuance, but these places would still be safe and usable in a crisis.

We have also planned various economic things in this year's budget, such as the purchase of mobile generators. After every civil protection exercise, we draw conclusions on what would be the things to invest in. Moreover, this does not require a huge budget, not hundreds of thousands of euros, but tens of thousands. There are certain buildings where the electricity supply needs to be upgraded. We are going step by step and sorting things out, not just waiting for European funds.

When it comes to digital security, the challenges are many. Are you thinking about it and finding solutions?

No doubt. We are also part of a big system and from time to time we face digital challenges, problems and issues. Our experts keep up with it, introduce new solutions, adapt and educate us too.

We live in an age where this is the way it is going to be, and that is why critical thinking is so important. Everyone needs to be aware of their responsibility, what we do online, why we go to certain sites, how we handle information. If people understand the consequences of their actions, then the risk is reduced.

We trust our experts. Every year, in the budget planning, they propose improvements, both new tools and security features. And we implement them as much as possible.

Do you also use artificial intelligence (AI)?

Yes, of course. It is a daily process. We cannot do without it. Of course, it must be used in a proportionate and critical way. My colleagues and I are looking at where AI can be integrated to help. Of course, we cannot trust 100 percent of these AI solutions, but we are open to listening and learning. We use AI more for internal processes, to find information, to analyze, but of course it all has to be approached critically. It is part of our times, we can deny it, but there it is. You have to understand what it is for and when it is to be used.

Is the public transport network in the municipality sufficient? Have there been cuts, and what are they related to?

If I have to answer in one sentence, the public transport network in the county is currently satisfactory. We have relatively well connected parishes and towns. The exception is Gudenieki, where the number of passengers has been very low, so routes have been reduced. There is no direct public transport from Gudenieki to Kuldiga.

Public transport is more adapted to students and commuters. This means going to the city in the morning and back in the evening. This is good, but it poses challenges, for example for going to training or art schools - where solutions often have to be found with neighbors or parents cooperating with each other.

We also see and are already working on better transport links between our two cities - Kuldiga and Skrunda. Better and more frequent public transport would be needed. Buses run, but the times do not always meet the needs of the population. The journey is supposedly short - 30 minutes by car, but almost an hour by bus, because it takes a route around the area.

This also affects the choice of services. People from Skrunda often travel to Saldus or Liepaja for services, as it is quicker to get there. This is also true for schoolchildren, as the choice of where to study is linked to transport options.

I think that we will be able to resolve this issue, because from next year, 300 soldiers of mandatory defense service will also be in Skrunda, in Mezaine. Then, together with the Defense Ministry, we will have to think how to provide better public transport between the towns for these young people.

I am hopeful about this, because it is the connection of cities that is the biggest challenge in public transport, to make it more convenient, more frequent and faster.