Urban-planning expert report: The “Puls” premises in Kočani had been illegally converted into a nightclub

The urban-planning documentation of the City of Kočani, dating from 1998 to the present, as well as the Construction Law, did not allow the industrial premises at the location where the “Puls” nightclub/cabaret operated to be repurposed for catering activities. Nevertheless, the investor began using part of it as a nightclub/cabaret as early as 2012, in violation of the PHU and legislation on urban planning and construction. This was stated by expert Dushica Trpchevska Angelkoviq at today’s hearing on the fire at the Kočani nightclub, held in the courtroom in “Idrizovo.” The tragedy claimed the lives of 63 people and injured more than 200 others.

At the opening of the hearing, prosecutor Darko Jakimovski announced that the construction expert report had been prepared covering several fields. The proceedings continued with issues related to urban planning and the testimony of Dushica Trpchevska Angelkoviq, a member of the team that worked on preparing the construction expert report.

According to the expert’s explanation regarding urban planning, zone G10 of the City of Kočani, where the nightclub is located, has retained the same designated use. Both the first detailed urban plan, presented in 1998, and the latest plan in force, adopted in 2013, designate this zone for light industry and small businesses.

The expert referred to Article 97 of the Construction Law, according to which every building must be used only for the purpose for which it was designed and built. In the 2013 urban plan, the premises are designated G3 – services, while the compatible uses listed are B1, B2, B4, D2, D3, D4, G2, G4 and E2. The B3 designation, which concerns large hospitality facilities, including nightclubs and cabaret clubs, is not included on this list.

According to the expert, for the nightclub to be legally opened, an initiative to amend the PHU first had to be submitted to the Municipality of Kočani, with the aim of establishing the B3 designation as either a primary or compatible use. The municipality then had to receive an application to repurpose the premises under category B3, and a main design for this change had to be prepared. The design had to include all the requirements concerning the minimum technical conditions that the premises were obliged to meet under the Law on Hospitality Activities. Another option would have been to open the nightclub in a different building located in an area designated B3.

Asked whether the Municipality of Kočani could have intervened after hospitality activities had already begun on the premises, the expert explained that the Construction Law also sets out, among other things, how buildings are to be used. She said this was a category-two building, meaning one of local importance, for which permits are issued by the municipality. For this reason, the municipality should have acted within its powers and verified whether the premises were being used in accordance with the permits issued for their construction and use.

Regarding the question of whether the license issued for the nightclub/cabaret prevented municipal inspection services from responding, Dushica Trpchevska Angelkoviq explained that the two matters were not conditional upon one another.

The prosecutor also asked how it was possible for a hotel to be located nearby. The expert replied that the PHU included a plot designated B5 – hotel, but the section listing compatible uses for that plot was blank.

At the previous hearing, judicial expert and professor at the Faculty of Civil Engineering at USHCM Goran Markovski testified. At the time the construction expert report was being prepared, he was dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering. Markovski said the findings of the expert report showed beyond any doubt that, in the case of “Puls,” the system, institutions and individuals had all failed completely, while standards, rules and procedures had not been implemented.

Markovski said the team of experts from the Faculty of Civil Engineering had regretfully established that no fire-protection measures had been implemented at the premises where the “Puls” nightclub was located. The number of regular evacuation exits was zero. Based on the size of the premises, the permitted capacity was 363 guests, while more than 600 people were inside on the critical night.

According to the announcements, the presentation of evidence by the Prosecution is expected to conclude with this phase.

The trial is presided over by Judge Dijana Gruevska-Ilievska, while the Prosecution is represented by a team of 15 public prosecutors.

The fire at the “Puls” nightclub in Kočani broke out on March 16, 2025, during a concert by the band DNK. The incident claimed the lives of 63 people and injured more than 200 others. The tragedy is considered one of the worst in the country’s recent history.