Brno will not exchange five houses for properties obstructing the construction of the stadium

Brno - Brno will not exchange the covered market, the House of Lords from Kunštát, and three other buildings for the properties of entrepreneur Libor Procházka, which hinder the construction of a football stadium in the area behind Lužánky on city-owned land. This was stated in a press release today by the spokesman for the city hall, Filip Poňuchálek. Their value is insufficient compared to Procházka's properties. The buildings are valued at 184 million, while the entrepreneur's garages, tennis hall, and communications are worth more than 260 million. The city will continue negotiations with Procházka.

The two-billion stadium is to be built on the site of the old dilapidated stadium. Zbrojovka, which won the title there, left at the beginning of the millennium. The new stadium is set to have 30,000 seats.

Procházka demands other properties in exchange for his real estate. Initially, the city wanted to exchange nine residential buildings with him. However, their tenants and part of the coalition protested against this.

Against the planned exchange of five non-residential buildings, including the market, the opposition ODS initiated a petition that has already been signed by over 2,000 people. ODS criticized the city for wanting to exchange historically valuable buildings. Ultimately, the city withdrew from the intention after assessments of the value of the five buildings were prepared. These assessments took into account maintenance costs, the need for renovations, and rental income. The fact that some of the buildings are on the list of cultural monuments also played a role. The total price turned out to be significantly lower than Procházka's properties.

"We will continue negotiations with Mr. Procházka. The city leadership is interested in settling the property relations in the area behind Lužánky, whose current condition is the result of historical mistakes of the city. This area is valued at over 1.5 billion CZK, and without resolving these issues, unfortunately, nothing can be done with it. At the moment, we do not plan to commission further expert valuations; we want to thoroughly assess the situation," said Mayor Petr Vokřál (ANO).

Brno has been dealing with the dispute with Procházka for over ten years. If they do not reach an agreement, the city will probably have to pay 16 million annually. Although the properties are located on city-owned land, Brno has already lost a court case against Procházka for the use of certain communications or the roof of the underground garages, which serves as parking. Another court case for 38 million as compensation for damages from previous years is looming.