Future Development of the Center of Prague and Masaryk Railway Station

The invited professors agreed that the city has resigned from making decisions about the future of the key area in the city center. Will the public manage to stop the construction of the Central Business District?
On Wednesday, February 28, 2018, the Pirates organized an open debate at the Rebel Wings restaurant about the future development of the center of Prague and the surrounding area of Masaryk Railway Station. The panel discussion featured Deputy Mayor Petra Kolínská, Director of the Institute of Planning and Development of Prague Ondřej Boháč, Penta manager Pavel Streblov, professor of urbanism Karel Maier, professor of history Rostislav Švácha, and professor of social geography Luděk Sýkora.
Political party representatives (Pirates and Greens) and civic associations (Club For Old Prague) also participated in lively discussions with the audience. The main topic was the implementation of a complex of buildings extending from Masaryk Railway Station to the Prague Florenc bus station and the Main Railway Station, as proposed by architect Zaha Hadid in 2016 and advocated by developer Penta, supported by the current city leadership.
From the exchange of opinions and views, it emerged that as long as no application for a zoning decision has been submitted, a final decision has not yet been made. It is necessary to rely on valid principles of territorial development (ZÚR). Professor Maier confirmed: “If you want to complicate things for Penta, sue the zoning decision for inconsistency with ZÚR." Petra Kolínská expressed that if the state administration, especially the conservationists, raised objections against the planned implementation, the final decision would be delayed until after the elections.
IPR Director Boháč criticized the helplessness of the current political representation: “Prague actually doesn’t know how to deal with the given area." All the professors on the panel agreed that it would be best to start the entire process from scratch.
The Pirates propose calling an expert conference and a series of public discussions, from which a commission for an international conceptual urban planning competition for the entire area will subsequently emerge. The city must professionally define the needs and functions that this area should fulfill. The current megalomanic project serves only to extract the most valuable location in the city center.