Melje industrial zone

Melje Industrial Zone lies east of central Maribor, between Melje Hill and a bend in the Drava River. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, it became one of the city's main industrial districts, employing many people from Maribor and the surrounding area. The railway and the nearby river helped shape its growth, and Melje remains an area of manufacturing and business today.

Textile production left a particularly strong mark. One of the area's first textile factories opened in 1923, followed in 1926 by a factory complex established by Josip Hutter. After the Second World War, it became part of the Maribor Textile Factory (MTT). Surviving factory buildings recall an era when the textile industry shaped the local economy and everyday life for many families.

Another landmark is the dam on the Drava, built in 1968 to divert water into the supply canal of the Zlatoličje hydroelectric power plant. Its construction raised the river level and changed the waterfront. Melje brings together the history of industry, urban development and hydropower.