ČD is to negotiate better conditions for the sale of the Masaryk Railway Station land

Prague - The Supervisory Board of Czech Railways today suspended discussions about the sale of construction land around Masaryk Station in Prague, stating that the board of the state carrier must negotiate more favorable conditions with the investor. CTK was informed by ČD spokesperson Radek Joklík. The Penta group has a pre-emptive right to the land, offering 400 million crowns for it. The next regular meeting of the Supervisory Board is scheduled for September.
    According to Penta's managing director, Petr Palička, the company intends to purchase approximately 15,000 square meters of land from Czech Railways. The price calculation is based on a contract from 2003, which set the price at 7,200 crowns per square meter for future office and retail spaces. Thus, the price does not depend on the extent of the built-up land but on the floor area of the future administrative buildings that the city will allow to be constructed on the land. Czech Railways did not comment on the terms of the contract published by Penta.
    For the construction of a six-story building, the price is 32,400 crowns per square meter of land, which is the minimum price that Penta guarantees to Czech Railways, Palička said. With higher construction density, the price for the purchased square meter will be correspondingly higher.
    Czech Railways owns most of the land at Masaryk Station. The reconstruction of the station is planned by Masaryk Station Development, in which the railways own about 34 percent, while Penta holds the majority.
    Masaryk Station in the center of Prague primarily serves suburban transport, with over 30,000 passengers passing through it daily. The planned construction of office buildings is not expected to restrict the operation of the station; the plan also includes the future expansion of the station with two tracks for transport between central Prague and Václav Havel Airport.