First stage of Valmiera's Gauja riverbank promenade completed
Valmiera municipality has finished the first section of the Gauja right-bank promenade, from Ziedu gravas to Gaujas iela 7. Construction of the next section, toward the Valmiera Music School, has begun.
The first construction stage of the Gauja riverside promenade in Valmiera, a town in northern Latvia, has been completed. The section runs along the river's right bank from Ziedu gravas to Gaujas iela 7. Edīte Stērste, a communication and public relations specialist at the Valmiera municipality, informed the portal Valmieras Ziņas. The promenade is intended as a public space linking the bridges over the Gauja, and the works also reduce flood risk and bank erosion.
Ričards Gailums, deputy chairman of the Valmiera municipal council, said residents had waited a long time for the project and that external funding made it possible to improve the bank and cut flood risks. Zanda Lapsa, the municipality's chief architect, described the promenade not as a mere route along the river but as part of the city's public space, connected with parallel streets.
Access and amenities
A wide ramp with a viewing platform, linked to Pāvila Rozīša iela, provides access. On the main path, different surfaces separate traffic: clinker paving for pedestrians, asphalt for cyclists and roller skaters, and a gravel track by the water for runners and Nordic walkers. The site has rest areas, benches, bicycle racks, waste bins, a bicycle repair station, energy-efficient lighting and video surveillance.
Sustainability and bank reinforcement
The asphalt contains lignin developed by the company Fibenol, a wood-derived biomaterial that replaces 15% of the bitumen. Valuable trees and plantings were kept, damaged and dangerous trees were removed, and some fallen trees were left to preserve the riverbank's natural environment. At Gaujas iela 9–13 a retaining wall was reinforced, a stone wall restored and unsafe stairs toward Plostnieku iela demolished.
Costs and next steps
Total project costs are EUR 1,878,040.75, of which eligible costs are EUR 1,214,007.50. The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) contributed EUR 485,603, the municipality EUR 728,404.50, and costs outside the project came to EUR 664,033.25. SIA SANART carried out the construction and SIA BM-Projekts designed it.
The main promenade route, from the Narrow-gauge Railway Bridge to the Valmiera Music School, is being built under three ERDF co-financed projects. Later stages will use similar materials, design and colors. The municipality says work has begun on the section from Gaujas iela 7 to the Music School.
