Gentle Growth - Developing small towns in harmony with protected nature

How can a small town develop "project by project" - with measure and care for what already exists - so that urban renewal, a living local economy and nature-based tourism reinforce one another instead of competing with the landscape they depend on?

THE CLALLENGE

Small towns in less-developed, predominantly rural regions face a double pressure. On one side: depopulation, ageing and the pull of larger cities. On the other: the risk that growth - new zones, traffic, more visitors - quietly erodes the greenery, human scale and identity that make a town worth living in. Many of these towns sit right next to valuable protected nature - Natura 2000 sites, regional or nature parks. That natural capital is a genuine asset, but turning it into jobs, visitors and quality of life without harming it, and doing so with small budgets and small administrations, is hard. The shared challenge is integrated, human-scale development: keeping young people, attracting visitors and investment, and protecting nature - all at once.

WHO WE ARE

Garešnica is a small town of 8,624 residents across 23 settlements and 226.5 km², in the Moslavina region of continental Croatia, on the eastern slopes of the Moslavačka gora hills (Bjelovar-Bilogora County). It has held town status since 1997. Its defining feature is its setting: the Poilovlje area around the town lies within the Natura 2000 ecological network - home to the European beaver and otter and more than 60 protected bird species - while the nearby Regional Park Moslavačka gora is a protected landscape. The county as a whole counts 17 Natura 2000 areas covering roughly a third of its territory. Garešnica develops by one clear principle, drawn from its own strategy: harmony between nature and intervention - through minimal action, the greatest value.

OUR IDEA AND WHAT WE BRING

We want to build (or join) an Action Network of small and medium-sized towns that grow "project by project" in balance with protected nature, in order to exchange and co-produce concrete actions across four linked fronts: 

(1) human-scale public-space regeneration; 

(2) green & blue, nature-based tourism built on Natura 2000 assets; 

(3) a resilient local economy and business support; and 

(4) community facilities that help people stay.

Garešnica brings a tested, real portfolio to the table: 

• Town Centre Redevelopment (completed 2026) - preserving existing greenery and historic character while adding new trees, a cycle path and wider pavements, joining street and square into one continuous, walkable centre. 

• Garešnica City Park (concept) - a multifunctional park that doubles as a city square, with sports courts, play areas and a sculpture park co-created with local artists. 

• Skresovi Camp (in detailed design) - nature-based tourism and recreation on both banks of the Garešnica stream, with mobile cabins integrated into the forest. 

• Agro-Tehno Park (Tehno Park built 2019) - 1,770 m² of business space, 15 offices, a conference hall, a bistro and an intensive roof garden, plus a start-up incubator (INTERREG "Invest in LOG"), with the City offering young firms a rent-free first year. 

• Green Gardens of Poilovlje - an ERDF project (around €2.9 million; ~€2.3 million grant) that transformed the former town-centre cinema into a Natura 2000 Visitor Centre, the gateway to the Poilovlje wetlands. 

• A live pipeline - the Kapelica Enterprise Zone, a new kindergarten, a cross-border "Trappists to frontiersmen" heritage trail, and a "We Care" day centre for the elderly.

Behind all of this stands the Garešnica Enterprise Centre, the City's own development agency (since 2015), which in a single year prepared 71 projects worth almost €10 million.

THE PARTNERS WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We are looking for small and medium-sized towns on a similar development path: growing step by step, with limited resources, located in or beside rural areas and protected nature (Natura 2000 sites, regional or nature parks), and working to balance urban renewal, the local economy and nature-based tourism while staying attractive to residents and young people. We want partners with whom we can genuinely learn and co-create - sharing what worked, what failed, and how to do more with less. Cities further along in nature-based tourism, public-space quality or small-town economic development are very welcome - and so are cities just starting out who recognise exactly the same challenge.

We are building the partnership now and are open to joining as a partner or, with the right network, taking a lead role. Would your town like to grow gently, in harmony with its nature? 

Let's do it together.

CITY OF GAREŠNICA; DEVELOPMENT BROCHURE

City of Garešnica — Development Brochure