was announced that Blaha Lujza tér would undergo a major renovation with green spaces replacing the current car-park area. At the same time, the 1926 Corvin Áruház (department store) would get a facelift with its communist-era aluminium layer removed and the original façade restored. Works were originally scheduled to be completed by the end of 2019, but the new Józsefváros council, elected in the October 2019 local elections, delayed the work while it reviewed the plans. Józsefváros deputy mayor Dániel Rádai was quoted in July 2020 saying that reconstruction of the square would start in the spring of 2021, at the same that the restoration of the facade of the Corvin Áruház, which was expected to take eighteen months. He also foreshadowed the reconstruction of so far unreconstructed streets in the Palace District, firstly Szentkirályi utca. In December 2020 it was reported that the work would begin in 2021 and be completed by the autumn of 2022. More promising news for the district came with Budapest mayor Karácsony's announcement in early 2021 of his development plans for the city over the next seven years. These include long-overdue improvements to Rákóczi út and Üllöi út, both bordering one side in the Palace District. Despite being lined with magnificent buildings, both have become unlovely major roads, difficult for pedestrians to cross and with long stretches treeless. While the plan is currently short on detail, the stated aim will be to reduce road traffic, to give preference to public transport, to provide wider pedestrian areas and better provision for cycling and to plant more trees. It was announced in July 2021 that the long empty and neglected turn of the 20th century former Hungarian Association of Civil Servants building at Puskin utca 4 would be restored and redeveloped. The Palotanegyed Palaces External links References Józsefváros Neighbourhoods of Budapest Urban planning