Justice
Will Ousted Georgian President's Instant City Live On?
Plans to build a city of 500,000 from scratch may not survive after he leaves office.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili conceded defeat Tuesday and pledged to step aside peacefully when his term runs out in October 2013 (not a given in the post Soviet world). But what will become of one of Saakashvili's most audacious proposals -- a brand new city of more than half a million people on the swampy shores of the Black Sea?
Named Lazika, the city was dreamed up by Saakashvili last December. He planned for skyscrapers and buildings and a major port to rise within a decade, creating the country's second most populous city virtually overnight. As this New York Times article from April explains, the idea prompted many questions, especially about funding such a large project. Reporter Ellen Barry writes: