A hotelier will have to return nearly BGN 400,000 in EU funds for an apartment hotel, which produced only 15% of the pledged revenues, reports “Traffic”.
In 2014-2015 Gergana Simova through ET “GS – Hotels – Gergana Simove” joined the application for the Rural Development Program in the line of guest houses, as it became known funding. He applied with a proposal for processing a project of a residential building in the apartment hotel “Astoria” in Hissarya.
In her business plan, she set out to realize revenues from overnight stays and rents of a conference hall and retail outlets in the order of BGN 321,600 per year for the calendar years 2016, 2017. and 2018 In the end, Simova was approved and signed a contract under which a subsidy in the amount of BGN 391,160 was paid to her in several tranches. under the European program.
At the end of 2015, the site was inspected, but experts concluded that everything was fine.
This is how the full amount of the contract is paid. Everything was fine until 2019, when mass inspections of beneficiaries under the program began.
The reason for the inspections is scandalous data for several subsidized sites, for which there is evidence that they were built for the purposes of personal estates, and not for accommodation through which to develop resort and rural areas, as the idea of the program.
Thus, it turns out that huge amounts of abuse were committed with European money by building properties for personal use.
During the inspections in Plovdiv region it turned out that six companies have benefited from amounts between 130 thousand and 400 thousand levs for the construction of the so-called “guest houses” in Plovdiv region. Simova is among those accused of illegally draining subsidies from the State Agriculture Fund.
Upon a closer look at the accounting documentation of the Astoria Hotel, it became clear that on average for the three-year period only 14.26% of the pledged revenues were realized. Simova had revenues of BGN 35,913.79. for 2016 / 11.17% /, BGN 55,546.98. for 2017 / 17.27% / and BGN 46,150.27. for 2018 / 14.35% /.
The low implementation rate, compared to the revenue from the subsidized activity provided for in the business plan, was also detected by the number of overnight stays. According to a reference from the municipality of Hissarya, there are overnight stays in the site: for 2016. – 623 pcs .; for 2017 – 884pcs. and for 2018. – 651pcs.
The data were very different from the ones set, which is why Simova is obliged to return the money.
A few days ago, the hotelier tried to appeal before the Administrative Court – Plovdiv her act for establishing a public state receivable, which obliges her to reimburse BGN 391,160.
However, the magistrates categorically rejected her claims.
The reason is that according to item 30 of the Rules for determining the amount of reimbursable grant in case of established violations of the Program, when the beneficiary has not complied with the parameters set in the approved business plan in terms of revenue and this amount is less than 50% of the initially pledged, the same should fully reimburse the financial assistance provided to him.
Gergana Simova has the right to appeal the decision of the Administrative Court – Plovdiv in the Supreme Administrative Court within 4 days of the decision.
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