There is no doubt that the research should begin in Valka Municipality, where the local government addressed the issue of uninhabited buildings several years ago. Parish managers were tasked with identifying both municipal and privately owned forgotten houses, and they have posted advertisements online and held auctions. How have they fared?

Valka Municipality consists of five parishes, the town as an administrative centre, and 33 villages. Judging by the assessment of the municipal council chairman Vents Armands Krauklis, the Kārķi and Ērģeme parishes, managed by Pēteris Pētersons, have been surveyed most thoroughly. The council leader describes his work as excellent, as he is the only one to have approached the task systematically, with patience and perseverance. “For Pēteris, it is also a matter of conviction,” adds the council chairman.