Sylwia Strebska - Kamionek

Kamionek nowadays is a part of Praga Południe district of Warsaw. It has mainly postindustrail areas, former worker’s living areas and old, historical tenement houses. In XI century it was a small village called Kamion. In XIX century it developed rapidly with manufactures and in 1889 it became a part of Warsaw. In
1938 Kamionek had more than 40 industrial plants and factories and became a big industrail district.

Surprisingly that part of the city was not as distroyed as the rest of Warsaw during the 2nd World War. The huge problems of this part of the city started after economical and political changes of 90-ties. Many of factories had bancrupted and people lost their jobs. The key social problems of Kamionek are nowadays:
social stratification, unemployment, marginalization of the poor, pathologies – crimes, alcoholism, lack of social integrity. Unfortunately the heritage of the area is in most of cases devastated. Industrial buildings are being torn down to be replaced by modern ones – especially the living appartments.

At the moment the plans created by the city government to protect and revitalize abandoned industrial historical and socialist complexes and old houses seems to be only on paper. There are many examples of recent demolition of former factories in this area, which were declared as a historical industrial buildings. The area portrays the architectural mess, neglectness and “the moon landscape”. The Warsaw School of Social Sciences and Humanities or the building of the District Court are worth mention as good examples of renovating and adapting the former industrial plants.

The Warsaw School of Social Sciences and Humanities (Szkoła Wyższa Psychologii Społecznej, SWPS) was founded in 1996. In December 1999, SWPS purchased the former office building and industrial facilities of an electrical device plant on Chodakowska Street. Work on renovating and adapting the premises was launched in January 2001. In October, a ceremony inaugurating the new academic year and SWPS's fifth anniversary was already held in the newly remodelled building.