At the council meeting – an avalanche of questions for the smart village of Brožia project

At the meeting of the Klaipėda District Municipal Council held on Thursday, the most questions and comments were received by the last draft decision of the Council’s agenda regarding the approval to participate in and financial contribution to the project of the association “Samtis svitis”. After an unsatisfied request to delete the issue from the agenda, and then after long discussions, it was nevertheless agreed to allocate the requested 100,000 euros to the project, but 50,000. euros from the Municipal budget.
“Samtis health” – with a vision
The Council meeting was chaired by Council member Loreta Piaulokaitė-Motuzienė, since Mayor Bronius Markauskas was away on a business trip together with two vice-mayors. The Council meeting was attended by 25 Council members out of 27. Before considering the issues on the agenda, it was proposed to delete the question regarding the consent to buy the shareholder rights of the public institution “Palangas kräspinis”, as the offer to sell has been withdrawn. 24 Council members voted to withdraw the question. In total, 42 questions and 2 pieces of information were discussed in the agenda.
Both in the 4 Council committees and at the Council meeting held on Thursday, a passionate discussion boiled over regarding the draft decision, which requested to contribute to the financing of the project of the association “Samtis shytas” according to the local development strategy measure “Inclusive services and business” of the local activity group “Pajūrio krastas” for 2016-2023. infrastructure development and development’. In the explanatory letter submitted to the Council, it is stated that the association “Samtis szita” is preparing an application for the project “Smart Brožių kaimo innovationu centras” in accordance with the measure of the local development strategy of LAG “Pajūrio kraštas” 2016-2023.
Association “Samtis health” is an organization operating on the principle of networking, uniting the legal entities of the district, whose common goal is to develop a smart village in Brožiai. In the explanatory letter of the initiators of the project, it was mentioned that 5 Klaipėda district schools, the Public Health Center, the Brožiai village community, the association “Shefų kalvė”, scientists and experts from Kaunas Technologies and Vytautas the Great Universities would be included in the activities.
For the project activities, it is planned to build 1 modular house near the premises of the Brožiai village community, which will be equipped with a training base for cooks. And after the implementation of the project, according to the organizers of the project, it will be possible to offer educational institutions the supply of food products from local farms, and a new approach to children’s healthier nutrition will be formed, paying special attention to children with allergies and chronic diseases. “Trainings will be carried out from the funds of the project, research on the health-promoting properties of food will be carried out, their effects on individual groups of people will be analyzed, and new healthy food products will be developed,” the organizers of the mentioned project inform the Klaipėda District Municipal Council.
300,000 euros for the annual project
The goal of the project organizers is to assemble a team of innovators, to establish a health-friendly food innovation center, which would provide distance training and consultations on healthy nutrition, master’s training courses for cooks with mentoring services. The center would also house a gastronomic studio with a pilot simulation laboratory, creating healthy recipes and new products.
“The village of Brožiai is included in the map of smart villages “Smart rural 27”, the community of the village of Brožiai operates here, which is a partner of this project and participates in short food chains and has successful experience in implementing local activity projects. After the approval of the draft decision submitted by the Council, opportunities will be created to implement the project “Smart Brožių kaimo innovationu centras”, – the letter submitted to the Council by the project organizers reads. Project partners – Brožiai village community, “Shefų kalvė” association, “Kodas žalvedi” association, farmers Ernestas Rimgaila, Alanta Zapalskienė, UAB “Metos”.
The organizers of the project explained that the planned total value of the project application of the “Samtis health” association will reach EUR 300,000, of which the Municipality is requesting a contribution of EUR 100,000. Such an amount from the municipal budget appeared to the members of the District Council to be too high compared to the financing of other projects. Especially since the project will be implemented for only one year, starting on June 1 of this year. For example, Klaipėda district municipality, together with 18 other Lithuanian municipalities, participates in the implementation of the measure “Strengthening community activities in municipalities”, which is financed by the Ministry of Social Security and Labor of the Republic of Lithuania. During the implementation of this measure, 12 active community organizations of the Klaipėda district are allocated funding for the strengthening of community activities in the municipality. The total amount is 48 thousand. euros.
It was not a matter of urgency, but of clarity
In the committees of the Klaipėda District Municipality Council and at the Council meeting, many questions are raised to the project developers. Raimonda Damulienė, the chairperson of LAG “Pajūrio krastas”, who was called in to help, tried to dispel the uncertainties. The committees neither agreed nor disagreed with this issue and submitted it for consideration at the Council meeting. Council member, representative of the Fatherland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats faction, Martynas Martišauskas, proposed at the meeting to remove the question about the financing of the mentioned project from the Municipal budget from the agenda, because the question was presented in a hurry, not fully prepared, only the evening before the meeting additional documents were sent to the Council members. However, only 9 Council members voted to delete the question, 1 abstained, and 15 ruling majority votes resulted in the question being considered at the meeting.
Council member, member of the faction of the Union of Lithuanian Peasants and Greens, Šarūnas Nenartavičius, proposed to contribute not 100,000, but 50,000 from the Municipality’s budget. euros. However, the Councilor’s initiative was stopped by the opposition, which stated that it had questions. The first was asked by Council member M. Martišauskas, who asked Jolanta Beniušytė, the head of the association “Samtis svetna”, with which specific educational institutions and their managers were talked about the possibility of cooperation and supplying healthy food to schools. J. Beniušytė said that she had limited time to prepare the project, but meetings were held with schools, and a meeting on school cooperation will be announced later. M. Martišauskas also asked who was consulted from the Ministry of Health regarding the possibility of changing the description of the procedure for meals in educational institutions, but he did not receive an exact answer.
He expected a precise answer, but the leader of the opposition, liberal Justas Ruškys, did not get one either, when he asked what part of the social services plan is included in the association’s project, which the Municipality is not currently carrying out and for which more funding should be allocated.
Liberal movement faction member, Council member Julius Pozingis asked a question about project partners and asked Council member, LVŽS faction member Rima Leonauskienė, who works in the public health office of the Klaipėda district municipality, to comment on the possibility of changing catering procedures and rules in educational institutions. “The information provided by the project organizers is a little out of date. We received a list of new partners last night. In the previous letter, the Center for Public Health was indicated, in the current documents we are not listed as partners. I don’t know what they are broadcasting about changing the diet, because they don’t promise to change the diet in this project, I see that they have only planned a tasting,” said the Council member.
J. Beniušytė also answered the question, stating that the project is based on the consultations of specialists and scientists. “And those suggestions of our nutrition, tastings will be proven by research that these are good products and people will be able to choose them, just have a market from which they can choose really proven good products for their health and their nutrition, both children and adults”, – commented the head of the “Samtis health” association.
Some members of the Council also had doubts about the project estimate, partner organizations, some of which are newcomers, founded almost on the eve of the project submission.
The opposition voted against
Council member, member of the Liberal Movement faction Lina Daujotytė-Kasperavičienė said that a strange situation had arisen. “I don’t quite understand what this project is about, because it was talked about in the committees, that the whole point is district schools, changing recipes, training of cooks, somehow it was emphasized. Now all that’s left is the tasting, it feels like the project hasn’t been fully thought out,” said the Council member.
She asked Vice Mayor Violeta Riaukienė what would be the need for educational institutions to participate in this project. The vice-mayor noted that educational institutions themselves decide which projects to participate in. The head of the association, J. Beniušytė, added that she will organize an informational event for district schools regarding participation in this project.
Council member, liberal A. Balnionienė said that the idea is great, but doubts are not dispelled by many unanswered questions. Council member, opposition leader J. Ruškys, speaking about the reasons for the vote, said that he would vote against. “I’ll say it as I see it. I am very sorry for Jolanta Beniušytė, the head of the association, but this project is the most unethical attempt by LAG to take money from the Municipality. The money is huge, I imagine it’s 100 thousand, now it’s down to 50 thousand, but it’s a suggestion of the Council members, not the organization itself. I think that not all schools have already repaired roofs, not all streets are paved and fixed, not everywhere the lamp is still lit in the village, where children could go normally in the evenings. The most unethical project of LAG to take such a pile of money from the Municipality, it smells like 3 letters to me”, – stressed J. Ruškys in his speech.
For the decision with a change – not 100 thousand, but 50 thousand. euros for the aforementioned project – 15 members of the ruling majority of the Council voted, 1 member of the Council abstained, and 8 members of the opposition Council voted against.
Gabriele ČIUNKAITĖ
Associative photo