The Hostivař Cemetery will be expanded, its appearance will be determined by an architectural competition

The capacity of the Hostivař cemetery is no longer sufficient and will need to be expanded. The architectural competition, organized by the Administration of Prague Cemeteries in collaboration with the Institute of Planning and Development of the City of Prague, will determine what the new cemetery will look like. The results will be known at the beginning of next year.

"The participating architectural teams will be tasked with coming up with a solution that effectively and sensitively utilizes the designated plot and takes into account the already designed cemetery facilities. This will help the municipal district in deciding the future direction of the undeveloped area of old Hostivař," warns Petr Hlaváček, director of IPR.

The outcome should also allow for possible further expansion of the cemetery beyond its current boundaries and provide an architectural-urban solution for the main entrance, including the forecourt on K Jezeru Street. A specific task for the competitors will be to propose a connection between the old cemetery and the new section.

The only condition of the competition is the requirement to only inter cremated human remains, rather than placing traditional graves. The competitors will themselves determine what method of ash disposal they consider suitable in the long term. Therefore, options for urn graves, columbarium, establishment of an urn grove with epitaph stones, or choosing a scattering or deposit meadow can be considered. This is currently regarded as one of the most progressive options for placement.

The resulting projects should emphasize the significance of the site through the arrangement of greenery and other architectural means. The competitors may go into great detail, including expressing an artistic opinion on the appearance of individual grave sites.

The architectural competition is organized by the Institute of Planning and Development of the City of Prague in cooperation with the Administration of Prague Cemeteries, supported by the municipal district of Prague 15 - Hostivař. Individual proposals will be assessed by personalities such as historian Richard Biegel or architect Boris Redčenkov.

The architectural competition for the expansion of the cemetery is exceptional in the Prague context. Not only have such competitions not been issued in recent years, but it also raises hope that the winning designs will continue the interrupted tradition of Czech funerary architecture, which has always been dedicated to exceptional personalities of their time.