The Deputy Mayor of Tbilisi, Giorgi Tkemaladze, has announced plans to begin Rustaveli Avenue’s renovation in May. The avenue has been the focal point of daily anti-government rallies for almost 500 days.
Tkemaladze spoke to the BM.ge news outlet after the latter reported on Tuesday that the ₾12.3 million ($4.5 million) tenders for the renovation of the capital’s central avenue had been canceled. According to the National Agency of State Procurement’s website, no companies submitted proposals for tenders.
On Wednesday, Tkemaladze told BM.ge that ‘this is a natural process; projects can often fail, but new tenders will be announced in the coming days’.
‘Our plan is to begin the works by mid-May in order to make the most of the summer period, so that by September–October, when the new school year starts, the works will already be completed’, he added.
The cancelled tenders included the rehabilitation of various sections of the avenue, starting from Dzmebi Kakabadzeebi Street near the Rustaveli Metro station and extending to Freedom Square.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze first announced plans to rehabilitate Rustaveli Avenue at the end of 2023, claiming construction would begin the following year and last over two years total. Work had yet to start as of March 2026.
In February 2025, Kaladze again brought up the issue, stating that work would start in May with the goal of completing the project by the end of summer.
During the same period, Giorgi Abutidze, head of the City Hall’s Infrastructure Development Department, said that the avenue’s rehabilitation would be divided into four sections, with four different companies working on-site, in order to reduce the time required for the rehabilitation by ‘approximately four times’.
He also said that a temporary traffic management scheme would be developed to prevent traffic congestion, and that during the preparation of the scheme it would become clear which section of the avenue would be closed at what time.
By March of that year, however, Kaladze noted that the process had been delayed to 2026. At that time, he said that the works had initially been planned to be completed in three months, but they were postponed, citing the need for more time to organise utilities and carry out large-scale works, including on a damaged underground water collector.
‘We conducted certain studies and found that quite extensive underground works will need to be carried out’, he said.
The issue was also addressed by Kaladze in October 2025, when he noted that City Hall planned to begin the works after the 2026 New Year celebrations.
He noted the avenue is ‘in very poor condition’, pointing to serious problems with underground utilities that ‘will take some time to fix’.
Tbilisi City Hall has previously carried out the renovation of Rustaveli Avenue. This took place in 2020 on the sidewalk near the Parliament building. At that time, the City Hall announced the renewal of the sidewalk tiles, as well as underground utilities, drainage systems, and thermal insulation. The work then took seven months to complete.
Rustaveli Avenue — specifically the area in front of parliament — has, over the years, become one of the main locations for protests in Georgia, particularly in front of the parliament.
It is unclear where protesters would take their daily protests once rehabilitation begins.
