Ladies and Gentlemen,
Ząbki is a small town near Warsaw which serves as its sleeping quarters. The proximity of the capital provides access to a wide range of cultural and sporting activities as well as job opportunities. The town draws people with its relatively inexpensive housing, compared to Warsaw. That is why every year, the population continues to climb, currently numbering around 65 000.
We strive to make our town friendly to attract people who wish to settle and start a family here. We want people to feel comfortable around each other and identify with their place of residence; to feel responsible for their town and pay taxes right here.
In order to meet the expectations of the citizens Ząbki provides modern educational opportunities. In recognition of this, the town was granted the Leader of Education title awarded by the Euro-Partner Economic Foundation.
The town also has continuously expanding sport facilities – the main grandstand in accordance with I liga requirements, and a swimming pool, which are part of the Sport & Tourism & Recreation Centre. In addition, there is a seasonal ice rink and sport fields with artificial turf. The youth of Ząbki achieves sporting awards using the opportunities provided by the town and therefore promotes the city. The efforts in developing sport opportunities have been recognized and honored by Polish Sports Infrastructure Club. The town was awarded the title of a Sports Region for investing in modern sport and recreation facilities and an effective implementation of a program of sport and recreation in the community.
The town is open to cooperation with local entrepreneurs, willing to notice their successes and expand their potential. We organize business meetings and work closely with the entrepreneurs, for instance while implementing the “Discount for ID” program which encourages residents to register one’s residence here.
Ząbki places great importance on the security of its citizens. The town has roads and bicycle paths built and repaired. Recently a tunnel was built to connect the town and provide a safe crossing.
Ząbki also has a rich and interesting history and old architecture, memorials and honorary citizens.
I hope that you will find the following guide interesting and that it encourages you to visit our fast developing town.
Robert Perkowski
Mayor
Ząbki
The town of Ząbki lies within the Wołomin county, which is one of the largest counties in Poland. Despite the relatively small area (11.3 square kilometers) Ząbki is the second-largest town in the county when taking population into account (more than 25 thousand registered residents). Ząbki is located in the southern part of the county. The town’s neighbors are Warsaw, Marki and Zielonka.
Looking at the map it is obvious that Ząbki is situated much closer to Warsaw than to Wołomin.
In fact, there is no other town situated as close to Warsaw as Ząbki. The center of Warsaw is in fact only 8 km away, which means Ząbki is even closer than many districts of Warsaw itself. The location is perfect for the town’s development and ensures its attractiveness. The inhabitants have the goods and facilities of the largest city of Poland at their fingertips, while not having to endure any of the inconveniences of living in a large city.
On the other hand, there are also very interesting areas bordering Ząbki to the north and east (Wołomin county), which are known to be recreational and have tourist attractions, for instance the Zegrze Reservoir a dozen miles away.
History
The history of Ząbki dates back to the sixteenth century. The oldest known written source, dated to 1565, says that the royal village Wola Zambkowa belonged to the Bródno farm and was located on the sandy and marshy land on the edge of the Słupsk forest. Mayor Krzysztof Szablewski was appointed by the king Sigismund Augustus (1548-1572) and later passed the mayorship on to Zygmunt Zambek. And it was his name the village of Wola Zambkowa has received, according to Ryszard Żbikowski in ‘Ząbki. Dzieje, ludzie, miasto’. In the 17th century, the village was named Zambki, which later became Ząbki. In 1787, Michał Szubert - an internationally famous biologist and botanist, the founder and the first head of the Botanical Gardens in Łazienki, Warsaw - was born in Ząbki, where he lived later. Until the end of the 18th century, the village was continuously growing. In the beginning of the 19th century, the village's nature changed, evolving in a farmer-worker direction due to the new owners of Ząbki - the counts Plater. The changes were caused by the Platers beginning the brick industry in the demesne. At the end of the century, Ząbki and the brickyards found themselves in the hands of the Ronikier family. Count Adam Feliks Ronikier built more brickyards, a station and a side track of the Warsaw-Petersburg railway and a narrow-gauge line in the direction of Bródno, which led to an increase in both production and employment. Bricks and roof tiles from Ząbki brickyards were bought beyond Poland's borders, for instance in Paris.
The year 1862 is not only known for starting the railway from Warsaw to Petersburg, but also for building the first school in Ząbki - the oldest in what is the Wołomin county today.
Parallel to the development of Ząbki, in 1821 the history of Drewnica began with Leon Drewnicki establishing a modern farm near Ząbki. After the fall of the November uprising, in which Major Drewnicki - the commander of the Security Force on the right bank of Vistula - was very active, the Drewnica farm was confiscated by the Tsar and the village of Drewnica was established on the land.
In 1903, thanks to the efforts of Dr Karol Rychliński, the Drewnica Psychiatric Hospital was established in the village. It is still open today.
In 1911, Count Ronikier began fulfilling his dream - building a garden-city in Ząbki. Based on a project by prof. Tadeusz Tołwiński (designer of the National Museum in Warsaw among other things), the count's estates were divided. The implementation of this urban planning idea was interrupted by WWI and afterwards the project was only continued to a limited degree. The remnants can still be found in the Parcele neighborhood of Ząbki.
In 1916, Count Ronikier and Duchess Radziwiłł led to the building of the first wooden church in Ząbki, and in 1919 the parish was established. In 1920, next to this very church, the day before the Miracle on the Vistula, priest Ignacy Skorupko celebrated his last Mass. During the Battle of Warsaw, a temporary hospital for the wounded of Ossów was established in the estate of Duchess Radziwiłł. The soldiers who succumbed to their wounds were buried in the local cemetery, and in 1924 a monument was erected on their grave.
In the interwar period, the Volunteer Fire Department was created in 1925, the 'Ząbkovia' sport club was started in 1927, a post office opened in 1927 and electricity was brought to the town in 1935.
WWII interrupted construction work on the school and a new parish church. From the very moment the occupation started, a Resistance movement was active in the village. Currently the largest roundabout in the town is named after the heroes of the Home Army, Tuliński husband and wife.
The post-war period meant opening the health center in 1950, incorporating Drewnica and being recognized as a settlement in 1956, building the second primary school in 1962 and finally gaining municipal rights in 1967.
In the years 1972-75 Blessed Jerzy Popiełuszko, whose monument stands in front of the Holy Trinity church, served in Ząbki as a vicar for the first time. Fryderyk Antoni Hayder (1905-1990), an artist who authored the interior design project of the Register Office, where since 2015 the wedding hall bears his name.
Today Ząbki is one of the fastest growing towns in the vicinity of Warsaw, and fairly well connected to the Polish capital. Vast investment enables expanding quickly the road infrastructure as well as water, educational and sports facilities. Ząbki has a rich history, monuments and honored citizens, and the brilliant location makes you want to settle here for good.
In large urban areas the quality of life is determined especially by efficient and well-developed public transport, both within the town itself and to neighboring towns.
Transport
Since the town is not extensive, the most popular means of transport within the town are cars and bikes. To improve internal traffic we thoroughly modernized the main roadways in the town. Moreover, a collision-free tunnel was built under the railway track. For cycling enthusiasts, new bike lanes are being created. Within the town itself, it is nice to go for a walk. From one part of the town one can reach the other easily using both Warsaw and private buses, which are already a staple of external transport. Since 2011, registered Ząbki residents can take advantage of free public transport lines – Ząbki 1 and Ząbki 2 which run through the town to reach the shopping center in Marki or the railway station Warszawa Rembertów. However, the oldest means of transport is the railway route Warszawa Wileńska – Ząbki – Wołomin – Tłuszcz – Małkinia. In the future, the town government would like to start a first tram line to go beyond Warsaw itself. To improve transportation, modernized and newly designed roads such as S8 and S17 are equally important. They are a great way to facilitate entry to or exit from the town.
Without any doubt, Ząbki today have the easiest transportation of all the communities near Warsaw.
Education
Without any doubt, the local education is a point of pride for the town. A very high level of education puts Ząbki schools on the same level as the best educational institutions of the region. It is so thanks to the qualified teaching staff, supported by parents and very good facilities. More than half of the schools can boast new buildings with gyms and fields with artificial turf. The schools’ success is determined by above-average efforts on part of the headmasters and teachers, which is expressed in a rich and interesting range of extracurricular activities. Schools, as well as individual students, are involved in many competitions – sporting, cultural or promoting non-standard activities.
The town’s schools actively participate in international student exchanges, including those which are part of EU projects. We have successfully organized interesting scientific conferences. Ząbki schools take advantage of the latest technology in the area of organization, too. For instance, an electronic journal is implemented in schools.
The rapid development of the town results in very high demand for pre-schooling. To meet those requirements, the town built a large kindergarten for 13 groups of children from scratch. In terms of aesthetics and functionality, it is one of the most beautiful and most modern facilities of its kind in Poland. Many private-owned preschools and nurseries are also built in the town.
Culture
The main organizer of cultural activities in Ząbki is the Municipal Cultural Centre located in two places: in a historic villa „Alina”, which was owned in the 1920s by General Władysław Sikorski, and in the grandstand building, where there is a well-equipped auditorium with facilities.
Current cultural activities are carried out by different sections and special interest groups, such as: drawing and painting workshop (children, adolescents and adults), theatre studio, ceramic workshop, vocal workshop, keyboard instruments lessons, guitar lessons, modern dance club “FART”, ballroom dancing (children and adults), ballet lessons, photo workshop, art education group (visual arts, eurythmics, playacting), visual arts for younger children, “Cantores Misericordiae” Town & Parish Choir, memory training, “Relax” and “Retro” seniors clubs, the Seniors Choir “Złota Jesień”.
In addition to daily activities MOK organizes exhibitions, competitions and interesting meetings with artists.
An important cultural institution is the Public Library, which provides books to borrow and implements interesting initiatives, such as the writers meetings with readers or the book club.
Thanks to the cooperation with the Warsaw Wholesale Grocery Market, events on a regional scale take place in Ząbki, such as Days of Regional Products “Polskie Smaki”.
Sport and activities
The main center of sports life in the town is the Municipal Sports and Recreation Center, which serves to meet the needs of society in the broadest sense of physical culture, sport, tourism and recreation. MOSiR efforts are related to the creation of appropriate conditions for sports and recreation and the modernization and development of recreation and sporting facilities. Gradually, new sports facilities are being built. In recent years, two “Orlik” fields were built. Every one consists of a football pitch with artificial grass and a multi-purpose polyurethane-covered court. In addition to this, the “Blisko boisko” – a football pitch with artificial grass and three multi-purpose polyurethane-covered courts – was built. In 2012 the main grandstand with socio-administrative facilities was opened on the Municipal Stadium, home of the football matches of the I liga Dolcan Ząbki team.
In addition to training classes MOSiR organizes many different sporting events that regularly take place in the town. These include badminton and table tennis Grand Prix tournaments, races, tournaments and martial arts galas, football tournaments, and much more. MOSiR has a team of oldboys (players over 35) and veterans (players over 45) who regularly participate in the league and football tournaments. The sports facilities of MOSiR are used by the youth football teams MKS Dolcan Ząbki (boys) and UKS Ząbkovia Ząbki (girls) and the fencers from UKS Szabla Ząbki (girls and boys). Several clubs are active in the town such as: MKS Ząbki, UKS Jedynka Ząbki, UKS Dwójka Ząbki, UKS Yoko Ząbki, UKS AZ – Aktywni Ząbki, the 61st Circle of Polish Fishing Union and others.
For the residents of Ząbki, both the children and adults who want to spend their free time in an active way, MOSiR organizes many recreational or sporting events. Due to cooperation with local schools, many events take place such as school picnics, “Poland Runs” and “The Independence Day Run”, Grand Prix tournaments in table tennis and badminton or many other tournaments and sporting events. Every year, MOSiR hosts a festival for Children’s Day. The Ząbki Football Six-a-Side League is very popular among adults, as well as numerous family events.
The clean forests around the town are a great place to have a good time. Subsequent investments have expanded the range of possibilities, resulting in creation of public fields and an ice rink (open in winter). Recently a pool with modern facilities (spa, gyms, fitness clubs) was opened. Bike lanes are built along the roads, as well as playgrounds.
Every year in the spring-summer season, citywide festivities take place in the Town Park and provide entertainment for both children and adults.
Cooperation with community organizations
The town of Ząbki works with community organizations at various levels, to encourage local development and support activities for different social groups.
The town’s efforts are focused in particular on creating conditions for increasing social activity, conduct interesting and effective initiatives for residents, complementing the town’s efforts which are not covered by the local government, and to increase the residents’ participation in solving local problems.
The town supports community organizations when it comes to organizing summer and winter holidays for children and adolescents, promoting physical culture and sports in the non-commercial form, dissemination of musical culture by hosting competitions and music reviews, and promoting activities in the field of health promotion and protection. In addition, efforts are made in assisting the homeless by constructing temporary shelters and running a SEN afterschool club aimed at equalizing educational opportunities and development of children and adolescents with specific learning disabilities.
A positive attitude and a will for cooperation on the town government’s side and the financial and non-financial assistance provided to non-government organizations positively affect the contacts and relationships with the third sector and bring visible results for the residents.
Having a perfect transport to Warsaw, Ząbki is an excellent base for business. Warsaw Wholesale Grocery Market – one of the largest markets in Mazowsze – is located in the town, as well as many shops and services. The number is still growing due to a large increase in population. This in turn creates a need to expand the housing, conducted by resilient development companies in the town. The town authorities care about creating a good business climate. Every year, meetings for representatives of companies which cooperate with the town are held and the fastest growing companies are honored with statues. Cooperation with business owners includes giving discounts on products and services offered for residents registered in Ząbki as part of the “Discount for ID” action. Since 2013, local entrepreneurs in collaboration with the town organize meetings, including training and discussions, to facilitate integration of the business community. As a result, a business networking group “Przedsiębiorcze Ząbki” was created. The town authorities are open to innovation and cooperation with the business sector, so it may be possible to create a business incubator in the future.
The town government is implementing the idea of a friendly town and make every effort possible to ensure the safety of the residents of Ząbki.
The town has a police station and municipal police, who work closely together, including carrying out joint patrols. The main task of the patrols is to control places of risk, such as playgrounds, school and kindergarten environs and other public facilities.
Children and adolescents have the opportunity to use efficient youth community centers where they can spend their time (even during the winter and summer holidays), do their homework, eat a meal and talk about their problems, all under professional care.
Since 2010, thanks to the EU funding, many kilometers of roads and bike lanes have been built. There is also a modern tunnel which connects two parts of the town safely and serves to discharge traffic jams forming during peak hours.
In order for the residents to feel safe, the monitoring of the most dangerous places in the town is planned in the future.
Health
In Ząbki, there is a public health center, as well as more and more privately owned ones. One can receive professional specialist help there. One of the privately owned centers provides night and holiday care for the inhabitants of neighboring towns as part of their contract with NFZ. The existence of multiple pharmacies in Ząbki means it is easy to purchase necessary medicine, especially since one of them is open for 24h.
Privately owned offices provide dentist or physiotherapy services.
For many years, the Support Group for Disabled Children and Youth has been active in Ząbki, offering daytime activities run by professional staff.
In 1903, thanks to the efforts of the Warsaw Society for the Care of the Mentally Sick a psychiatric hospital was opened in what used to be the Drewnica village. The hospital is open to this day, currently named the Mazovian District Hospital Drewnica. The hospital has highly qualified staff and will soon gain modern premises up to European standards of care.
The whole year long, the town hosts multiple precautionary health promotion efforts, including breast cancer prevention checkups in "mammobuses". The procedures are funded by the NFZ. Every year the Town Park hosts health promotion fairs while schools and preschools host precautionary meetings for children and adults.
All the aforementioned actions mean the citizens are increasingly more satisfied with the level of health services offered in their town.
