Katowice Giszowiec – the right place to live?

6 kilometres from the centre of Katowice lies a picturesque district – Giszowiec. There are many multi-storey buildings here, as well as historic one- and two-family houses that once formed part of a mining estate. And all of it is surrounded by green forests… Does it sound like a description of a thriving district where it is worth looking for a flat for sale for your family? That is exactly what it is. What else is worth knowing about Giszowiec in Katowice?

Giszowiec has its roots firmly in mining. At the beginning of the 20th century a German company decided to mine new coal seams here. When the first shaft was sunk in 1906, work began on organising an estate for the workers of the "Giesche" mine. Today the mine is called "Wieczorek", but the name of the district still recalls its beginnings.

A city or a garden?

The estate was built in 1907-1910 and was immediately regarded as a pioneering undertaking. The architectural solutions used went beyond those of other mining estates in the country at the time. What was so different about the Giszowiec estate? Its designers applied the idea of a garden city, that is, an estate set away from the centre with low-rise, low-density housing and no shortage of parks, squares and gardens.

A new estate soon

In 1979-1990 the estate was called the Stanisław Staszic Estate. Today it covers a little over 12 km2 and is home to almost 18.5 thousand people. It is an area of Katowice that is developing – a residential development is currently under way here on ulica Karolinki. This spring a Katowice developer signed a preliminary agreement (umowa przedwstępna) to purchase a 9.4-hectare plot of land. More than 1.6 thousand flats and commercial premises will be built on it.

Balanced living conditions

As the developer admits, the purchased area is not easy terrain for building. Why, then, has it taken on the project? Because Giszowiec is a very good place to live and fits perfectly with today's needs and expectations of residential estates. The new housing will create a well-balanced estate – residents will be able to use extensive infrastructure and enjoy freedom, plenty of space, closeness to nature and clean air.

As for the existing buildings, although they are not the newest, they have another important advantage. The prices of tenement houses and so-called "familoki" (traditional workers' houses) are much lower than the prices of properties built today, thanks to which the whole district is counted among the cheapest in the city. And familoki – as the foremost representative of the industrial era – are experiencing a renaissance today, linked to the fashion for the industrial style in interior design.

As for the safety of the district, residents rated it at 5.25 points on a 7-point scale. They rated their neighbours similarly – the courtesy of the people living in Giszowiec stands at 5.34. Of course, in line with what we wrote earlier, the district simply had to do well in the question about greenery too. Residents gave Giszowiec 6.31 points in this category. The cleanliness of the area, the ease of getting to places such as work and school, the convenience of everyday shopping, and the availability of facilities related to bringing up and caring for children were rated only slightly lower. Giszowiec thus emerges as an ideal place to live, and this is confirmed by those who know the subject best – the district's own residents.