The odd construction craze is visible outside of the country's capital as well, and is perhaps most apparent along Bulgaria's seaside. The coast used to be a source of national pride, with its charming vacation towns and historic locations. In recent years, however, new hotels and restaurants have been emerging along the Black Sea coast at a dazzling speed, vastly changing the atmosphere and feel of the seaside (now marred by the numerous construction sites), replacing traditional Bulgarian restaurants with Irish pubs and American-style steakhouses, and leaving little space for tourists on the local beaches (some of the new buildings have actually taken up some of the public-beach space as well). The winter resorts in the country have had a similar fate, where over-construction has taken away from the tremendous natural beauty of many Bulgarian mountains.

While there are some positive aspects of the changing Bulgarian landscape, among which are revenues from the tourism industry, as well as a boost in private consumption, these benefits have come at a significant cost. While the construction of a new club, hotel or a mall does provide variety, recreation and entertainment options for local citizens and foreigners visiting Bulgaria, the excessive proportions of such construction in recent years have completely altered the feel of many Bulgarian historic and natural sites. At the same time, the haste to compete for a share of what was just a few years ago a booming real estate market has resulted in the overexploitation of available land and in unsafe construction practices (as new buildings are being built in dangerous proximity to old ones). For instance, in the spring of 2008, a new construction site in the Bulgarian city of Vidin caused the collapse of the building next to it. The latter had been an architectural monument. Such occurrences are not rare in Bulgaria, where only last week residents of an apartment building in the Black Sea city of Varna complained that the initiation of a construction site right outside of their homes has created cracks in the walls of their apartment complex and anxiety that their building might soon crumble as well.

Perhaps most importantly, however, Bulgaria's construction craze may prove to have devastating environmental impacts. Last spring, 820,000 square meters of oak forests along the Black Sea coast were sold to developers planning to replace them with new seaside resorts. In mid-December the Bulgarian forest law was amended, which, according to environmental activists in the country, would further facilitate the sale of forests to private owners for development and construction. An August 2008 report by the Bulgarian chapter of the World Wildlife Fund pointed to crucial problems with the existence and quality of environmental evaluations of Bulgaria's construction projects. At the same time, the over-construction within the country's capital, in terms of both residential buildings and business centers, coupled with the inadequate infrastructure expansion required to facilitate the city's quickly increasing population, have contributed to the worst traffic congestion problems that Sofia has ever seen, further aggravating the environmental damage of excessive construction.

While there are predictions that the global financial crisis will have a dampening effect on Bulgaria's ambitious construction projects, the government needs to take a much more active role in curbing this excessive trend in the country. The historic, cultural and environmental resources of Bulgaria should not be left at the mercy of corruption and economic cycles.

Maria Stoyadinova is a graduate student at the Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington, D.C.