September 15, 2020 - Split is on its way to becoming a 'Smart City' as the Split Mayor opens new charging stations for electric cars. 

Split.hr reports that at the intersection of Domovinskog rata and Varazdinska ulica, the mayor of Split, Andro Krstulovic Opara, and the president of the Management Board of Hrvatska elektroprivreda, Frane Barbaric, officially put into operation a new charging station for electric cars. The honor of charging the first electric car at this jubilee, 200th ELEN charging station in Croatia, went to the mayor of Split.

"Publicly available charging stations on Simiceva Street and Brodarica, then the one we put into operation today, are just part of the electric charging stations for cars that are coming to the Split area, and there will be as many as 22 by the end of the year. A smart city is our concept for Split's future, where the electrification of traffic is a significant segment of development. This is a strong step towards that goal. This is a pledge of the green future of Split and a pledge of smart development of the city in the future," said Krstulovic Opara.

HEP leader Frane Barbaric stated that the investment cycle of setting up charging stations in Split, as well as in Split-Dalmatia County, is currently worth over 12 million kuna. Barbaric especially thanked the Mayor of Split and the City of Split's competent services for the successful implementation of the e-mobility project. Split-Dalmatia County prefect Blazenko Boban also expressed satisfaction with HEP's plans for the electrification of road traffic, saying that other investments in the field of energy development of Dalmatia and the islands are by no means negligible.

The HEP charging station that opened on Monday is 50 kW; it was set up based on an agreement between HEP and the City of Split and has three standard connections that can be used by all electric vehicles currently on the market. HEP financed the installation of 200 ELEN filling stations throughout Croatia with its own funds and funds from EU funds.

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August 20, 2020 - The Split Mayor, Andro Krstulovic Opara, said that the recently increased number of newly infected in Split-Dalmatia County was "a consequence of a larger number of tourists and a larger number of young people enjoying nightlife." He sharply called out the irresponsible caterers.

T.portal reports that Krstulovic said that the city's Civil Protection Headquarters reacted as soon as they noticed the sudden growth of the newly infected, convening an emergency meeting on Monday, N1 reports.

"These are not worrying numbers, but we had to intervene," said the mayor, noting that the meeting was attended by the director of the Split-Dalmatia County Teaching Institute for Public Health, Zeljka Karin, and the president of the Croatian Chamber of Trades and Crafts (HOK) for Split, Jozo Tomas.

The meeting was convened, the mayor explained, "to harmonize the work with the work of the inspection services to prevent those little anomalies and those rare greedy recidivists." The term “greedy recidivists” referred to the group of caterers who did not implement epidemiological measures.

Krstulovic Opara believes that the number of infected will "drop soon".

The N1 reporter was interested in whether the reaction came late, because, for example, out of Wednesday's 66 new cases in the county, as many as 18 are from Imotski, which seems to be a possible focus, as he stated.

"Time will tell if the reaction is timely," the mayor replied, adding:

"We're at 70 percent overnight stays compared to last year. The economy has finally started... It would be dreadful to jeopardize results like this now because of a few."

He believes that the national headquarters made the right decisions and quality instructions in a timely manner, but that, apart from the irresponsible caterers, the problem is overburdening inspectors. On limiting the work of bars, cafes and catering clubs, the Split Mayor said:

"If they (the caterers) would stick to the measures, as far as we are concerned, they could work all night. It can already be seen that there is a smaller number of those who violate the measures."

Opara concluded by saying in the autumn, he "would not say that it will be difficult, but that it would be demanding."

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March 13, 2020 - The City of Split and Mayor Andro Krustolovic Opara address citizens on the coronavirus outbreak. 

“In accordance with the decision of the Ministry of Health to declare the danger of an epidemic of infectious disease COVID-19, and in order to prevent the spread of the disease, the City of Split temporarily changes its working hours to work with parties in the administrative bodies of the city administration.

From Monday, March 16, 2020, all communications from the City Administration will be made by telephone and email. Parties will be received at the offices exclusively at the times agreed upon by telephone or email. Central Office hours remain unchanged, every working day from 8 am to 3 pm. Also, the office hours of the City Treasury remain unchanged, from 8 am to 12 pm. We remind you that invoices can be paid at all OTP Bank branches free of charge.

City companies, Split Vodovod and Sewerage, Split Čistoća and Split Parking have also called on service users to communicate by telephone or e-mail, all with a view to suppressing coronaviruses, protection, and employees and citizens.

City institutions in culture, according to the instructions of the Headquarters, postponed all the planned events, and all sports events in the sports facilities of the City of Split are postponed.

Employees of the city government, city companies and city institutions continue to carry out their regular jobs on a regular basis, and all these measures, according to the recommendation of the Ministry of Health and the National Headquarters, must be introduced to protect all citizens.

City institutions in the culture, according to the instructions of the Headquarters, postponed all the planned events and events, and all sports events in the sports facilities of the City of Split are postponed.

Employees of the city government, city companies and city institutions continue to carry out their regular jobs on a regular basis, and all these measures, according to the recommendation of the Ministry of Health and the National Headquarters, must be introduced to protect all citizens.

According to the Decision of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, as of Monday, March 16, there will be no teaching in primary and secondary schools or colleges. The Ministry of Science and Education will organize the classes electronically, which all parents and students have already received or will receive instruction in their schools, which are ready to teach according to the Ministry's instructions. The elementary schools of the City of Split will receive lower-grade students who cannot be provided with care by their parents from 8 am to 4 pm.

The kindergartens co-founded by the City of Split (DV Cvit Mediterranean, DV Grigor Vitez, DV Radost and DV Marjan) will also be open Monday for children whose parents work and cannot arrange for home care. We encourage parents to request detailed information at the schools and kindergartens their children attend.”

Information and instructions for citizens on how to behave if they have coronavirus symptoms and preventive measures have been published on the website of the City of Split," said the City.

Mayor Andro Krustolovic Opara also addressed the people of Split.

“We are facing a situation that needs to be addressed with utmost prudence, responsibility, and solidarity.

I know that I should tell you "don't panic", and indeed, with our Ministry of Health and the National Headquarters, which has been leading the lead well since the beginning of this crisis, and we should not panic but listen to them and act in accordance with their instructions. However, I understand the fear of the unknown, the emptying of shops and pharmacies,… Keep in mind that all measures taken are aimed at preventing and preventing the spread of the infection, so we are obliged to respect them all.

I would ask our youngest fellow citizens to listen to their parents and seniors and to follow their school responsibilities from home. I know it's a good time and you would most like to go out and play. Patience, the time will come for this as soon as this virus passes, and it will happen quickly if we are all responsible and obey the instructions of our crisis staff. Help grandparents avoid having to go outside or shop because we have to keep them safe the most because they are the most sensitive.

Dear fellow citizens, it is up to us to act responsibly, to ourselves and to the society in which we live. Only if we listen to the professionals and respect the measures that those responsible give us, life in Split, Dalmatia and in Croatia, and ultimately the whole world, will soon return to normal,” said Mayor Andro Krstulovic Opara.

In addition to the daily TCN briefing, you can follow all aspects of TCN's coronavirus coverage in the dedicated COVID-19 section by clicking here. 

June 16, 2019 - Split Mayor Andro Krstulović Opara sent a message to Split's guests this year, accompanied by a poster clearly displaying what guests should not do while visiting the city.

Here's this year's message via Opara's official Facebook page:

“Welcome to our dear guests,

Turn off your everyday life, take a deep breath, and immerse yourself in the magical world this ancient city offers. Relax and let the spirit of Split take you in because it will be an unforgettable experience of an open Mediterranean town. To ensure you can talk about Split as an experience you’ll want to repeat after you get home, I will help you with 10 golden rules on navigating the Split mentality and Split landmarks:

1. ‘Pomalo’ is a word that you will hear often. This is a town where no one hurries, so there is no need to be anxious if it is not right now. Pomalo, it’ll be, and when it is, it will be great. After all, you are on holiday. 

2. I reminded our dear guests of ‘pižolot’ last year, and I don’t want you to forget. What a siesta is to Spain, pižolot is to us, an afternoon break from 2 pm to 5 pm. The sun is too strong, the temperature is too high and it's time to relax to get the strength for an evening out. 

3. Along with ‘pomalo’ and ‘pižolot’ is ‘fjaka’. With great satisfaction, people here interpret it as 'a state of mind with a strong will to do nothing'. As the sun sets, the fjaka sets in, and the energy awakens.

4. On hot days, run to the beach. A clean sea in the very center of the city is something big cities can rarely boast. Can you recall the last time you swam in the sea in the heart of a big city?

5. Picigin is played throughout the year, only in Split and only at one beach. Bačvice. We even have a World Championship in picigin. To ensure you don’t regret this later, put a towel under your arm, slip on your sandals, go to Bačvice, and find a spot in the sand where you can watch the tireless effort of players as they insist on not dropping the ball in the sea. If you are fit and good at acrobatics, try a game of picigin yourself. 

6. The fan spirit of Split is the opposite of the state described by the terms “pomalo” and "fjaka". The people of Split are extraordinary fans, there is always an atmosphere, and in every sport, we play for all or nothing. Of course, the most attractive fans are at the Hajduk football games, but do not miss any sporting event. Become a part of Split.

7. I mentioned the football club whose features you will find in many public areas around Split. Do not mess with them because Hajduk is a saint. Full stop.

8. Split also has other saints: the Cathedral of St. Duje, Marjan hill, Diocletian's Palace. We are reviving them and want to preserve them for the future generations of Split citizens and their guests. With your help, help us and support us in that purpose. Let's protect our heritage and world heritage together. This year, we will mark 40 years since Diocletian's Palace and its historic city core was listed in UNESCO. 

9. Like all Mediterranean people, we are loud, but we do not like noise when we are resting. Especially at night and especially below our windows. We know that you are on holiday and you want to celebrate, but don’t do it by blasting loud music in your apartment, because people around you need a break to make sure they can be at your service and the service of other guests tomorrow.

10. At our beaches, you wear swimsuits, and everywhere else the appropriate clothes for this time of year. Walking around the city without clothes or a piece of clothing, or just in a swimsuit will see you pay a fine of 500 kuna right away or 1,000 kuna after the misdemeanor procedure has been carried out. Why would you give up a dozen pizzas or 20 beers when you have some 30 kilometers of beaches in Split where you can show off your figure?

Dear guests,

Our tourism professionals will do everything to make sure you have an enjoyable and memorable holiday. The people of Split are extraordinary hosts, will give you their soul and take your heart, and all that they seek in return is respect for their wellbeing and our heritage, inheritance, and customs. I conclude with a short formula for a great vacation, getaway, and experience: enjoy and respect us. And it will be great.” 

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January 23, 2019 - The people of Split woke up to a rather unpleasant sight this morning, which many citizens are still trying to understand. The historic Split Vestibule inside Diocletian's Palace fell victim to graffiti vandalism.

Two contracts were signed yesterday in Split’s City Hall by both parties.