Government Promises Money to Municipalities for Heating Allowances - Karosta Already Planning New Tram Line

In Riga, they're sitting and deciding again how to help municipalities pay for heating allowances. The commission decided that the state will give 20 percent of the allowance amount and fully compensate for additional work costs for civil servants. In total, it comes to 9.9 million euros — a sum that in Liepāja could buy the entire Kurzeme Avenue and still have change left over for a tram ticket.

Rokpelnis explains that state revenues are growing faster than municipalities', so it's fair to compensate for additional costs. Meanwhile, Liepāja social worker Gundega says: "It's as cold here in winter as it was in Karosta in the nineties, but now at least there'll be money so people don't freeze. Sure, Riga's residents will say again that we're just holding out our hands by the sea, but which of them has walked our beach in winter without a coat?"

Riga Social Services director Moors supports full compensation because it's administratively simpler. "Of course, it's always simpler for Riga's folks — their central heating has been working since Soviet times, but here everyone heats their own house and handles their own allowances."

They only wanted to increase the coefficient to 3 for disabled pensioners, but the commission didn't support it — 24 million would be too expensive. "Yeah right, better spend that money on Riga street repairs that need to be redone after a year. But in Liepāja, with our 9.9 million we can survive the whole winter and still go celebrate at Pērkona Garden in spring."