Folly Arboretum plans to build a bottling plant in a quiet village on Lake Balaton

Ábrahámhegy is a quaint little village on the northern shore of Lake Balaton, located between Badacsony and Révfülöp. There are only 550 permanent residents, but the picturesque scenery draws many visitors during the summer seasons, and many people are proud owners of holiday homes in the area.  Soon, the village people may have a new landmark to content with – only a few weeks ago, locals heard rumors that neighboring village Badacsonytomaj’s Folly Arboretum and Winery wants to build a bottling plant in Ábrahámhegy. The site in question is owned by Folly and is classified as a commercial-service economic area by local regulation, but it is nestled in between family homes and is only two or three hundred meters away from Lake Balaton. Currently, the plot is adorned by towering trees and striking greenery. According to Folly plans, two six-meter-tall buildings may be towering over the locals instead. The locals are – well, discontent.

The plans themselves aren’t the only thing not sitting quite right. There’s a shroud of secrecy that has obfuscated the facts – residents learned that the plans for the plant were made as early as February, and the mayor knew by spring. The locals only heard about the potential changes at a public forum in mid-July. By then, they were presented with a decision already made – a fait accompli.

Ábrahámhegy is picturesque – a near-hidden place of solace that gives respite from the chaos and noise and dirt. The village includes a three-kilometre-long Balaton coastline – golden with sand and vibrant with a family-favorite beach kept clean and up to date by the municipal government.

Vineyards and forests and green hills lie opposite to the lake, rife with hiking routes and panoramas that don’t truly exist in Hungary until one suddenly realizes that they do. The air is light with sun and lavender.

The plant – even the idea of a plant – is therefore foreign to the region, and the news of the plans came as a shock to the locals.

They heard the news by accident, like an unfortunate rumor at a family Christmas that slips out and ruins the rest of the evening. This is despite the plans’ existence long before then. Indeed, the residents were only officially informed in a public forum held on the 10^th of July. As good a day as any to receive crushing news.

According to the forum, Folly planned to build an 850-square-meter plant in the village, which would consist of two six-meter-tall buildings – one for bottling, and one for warehousing.

The plans are ready, and the permits are in process. The facility would be built at the corner of Highway 71 and Honvéd Street. The plot has been owned by the Folly family for a while.

Honvéd Street is like any other street in the village – suburban, and residential. Somewhere a child would learn to ride a bike. On the other side of the would-be-plant – by Highway 71 – the railway tracks run through some more residential areas and holiday spots. And then, not 300 meters away, it’s the main draw, the top billing – Lake Balaton.

Most of the locals oppose Folly’s planned project – no industrial development belongs among Ábrahámhegy’s family homes and holiday houses, they believe. The huge facility would hurt the village’s character, they argued and would disturb the peace and quiet. In addition to the heavy machinery, the facility may also generate increased traffic, with a significant uptick in trucks that would rumble through the village.

The plot, owned by the Folly family, is classified as a commercial-service economic area by the local building regulations (HÉSZ), with a 30% buildability rate and a permitted maximum building height of 6 meters.

Despite the official classification, however, the plot is largely covered by a forest. In as early as 2021, Mayor Ferenc Zsolt Vella warned: “The development of this area would face significant public resistance, and the forest must remain.”

Indeed, the locals oppose it – but the municipality has now thrown its own support behind the development.

Vacationer Anna Becker, who owns her home just opposite the planned site, is determined to prevent the construction of the plant. “A facility like this doesn’t belong here,” she insisted. Another vacation homeowner, Andrea Házi, echoed the sentiment – she was concerned that the traffic would be unbearable. Local resident Zsuzsanna Borbély is also concerned about the possible destruction the plant would cause to the forest.

They firmly believe that most Ábrahámhegy residents are on the same page – in opposition of the project. They are concerned, however, that the mayor is more concerned with the investor interests than his constituency.

We asked the Ábrahámhegy municipality and the Folly Arboretum for the justification behind the locale. We also asked when they made the decision and why they delayed informing the residents, and if they were concerned about the increased noise and traffic as consequences of the project.

In response, Folly Arboretum stated: “The planned building is located next to the 71st main road, outside the inhabited area. The bottling will be carried out in a soundproofed space, complying with all legal regulations. The grapes arrive in September, and the bottles will leave with a few truck trips per month. The plans were made in such a way that all loading and unloading outside the building will be visually shielded from all sides and above from inhabited areas—thus the additional noise load on the environment will not even approach the existing noise load of the 71st road and the railway.”

Mayor Ferenc Zsolt Vella stated that he had received the plans for the bottling plant from Folly in mid-March, and the municipality had consulted with the investor in April. Vella noted that the plans made at the end of February did not comply with the regulations, so they still needed to be modified. They did not inform the residents earlier because they did not want to present incomplete material to the locals, he said.

The mayor also wrote that the plot in question has been classified as a commercial-service economic area since 2005. He weighted the residents’ interests against the possible job creation of the investment. He did add, however, that no official impact study has been prepared for the planned bottling plant to his knowledge. Like Folly, he wrote that any noise and visual impacts will be minimized.

Currently, he said, they are sifting through the feedback from the locals to ensure the plant promotes the town’s development objectives. He emphasized the importance of communication engagement but also noted that he wants to achieve cooperation between the interested parties.

Folly Arboretum and Winery Ltd is used to things going their way – they received over half a billion forints in state support from the Hungarian Tourism Agency around two years ago. Most of that money was used to commission a Fidesz-tied company for the development of the arboretum.

Owner Réka Folly had in the past been an advisor to the Hungarian Tourism Agency. A few years ago, then-President János Áder visited the arboretum and praised the Folly family’s work. The residents of Ábrahámhegy fear that the company’s strong government connections will eclipse their opposition to the plant.

Translated by Vanda Mayer. The original, Hungarian version of this story was written by Katalin Erdélyi and can be found here.