General Information

Kőbánya has strong industrial and organized labour traditions and has suffered much setback after the collapse of Socialism. Today, the district is rebuilding itself into a living area for the middle classes. Due to its large size, there are several areas within Kőbánya, each with different architecture. Presently Kőbánya has the pharmaceutical industry, and beer manufacturing (Dreher) to be proud of. Manufacturing and the chemical industry collapsed when socialism fell.

Additional Information

The centre of Kőbánya has a beautiful Catholic church built in late 19th century eclectic-Art Nouveau style, dedicated to knight-king St. Ladislaus. Next to it lies the secondary school, also dedicated to King Ladislaus. It specializes in biology and languages. Many elementary schools in Kőbánya have been closed in recent years due to dwindling birth rate.

Újhegy have been covered with a vast housing estate of 10-story concrete houses during the 1970s and 1980s. A very large area of Kőbánya land near Újhegy is occupied by a prison and the New Public Cemetery. Other large open spaces, namely the horse-racing circuit and the Expo area (used for international trade fairs during the communist era) will be relocated outside the district to allow for housing projects. In the north-west corner is a large public park called Népliget, which has been in poor shape since 1990. The south-west corner of Kőbánya hosts the terminal station of the M3 underground line and a large mass transit junction.