The center of the Ostrava exhibition grounds Černá louka should be a city park

Ostrava - The Ostrava Exhibition Grounds at Černá louka could change its appearance in the future. A park is set to become the center of the area near Masaryk Square. The complex would simultaneously serve as an entrance to the Ostravice River. Architect Pavel Řihák, the author of the urban study created by the City Atelier of Spatial Planning and Architecture (MAPPA), told journalists today.

"The center of Černá louka should be a park area with plenty of greenery and trees. Around it will be an oval that can serve sports and recreational purposes and possibly host some festivals taking place there. Behind that oval will be a ring of buildings, playgrounds, stages, and other activities for people," said Řihák.

According to him, the transformation should begin with the modification of the existing public space, which will expand towards Masaryk Square. "This central public space is crucial, and the individual buildings can be developed in further stages. We presented the study, and if everything goes well, we believe that the realization of the first part of that central space could be within the next three to five years," said Řihák.

The transformation of Černá louka has been discussed in Ostrava for many years. The urban design for the development of the exhibition grounds was proposed by the Dutch architectural studio Maxwan back in 2010, which won an international urban competition. The city had the proposal developed while applying for the title of European Capital of Culture 2015. This study also planned for an urban park surrounded by a ring of buildings primarily for cultural use.

"We preserved the overall principle, that is, a central space around which the individual buildings are located, which will no longer serve purely cultural functions. The original study also accounted for the demolition of a large number of current buildings while maintaining the original marketplace, which no longer exists today. On the contrary, we are preserving the buildings that were supposed to be demolished. We believe it should be this way because they also possess some historical value," said Řihák.

According to the managing director of the municipal company Černá louka, Jan Šumbera, work on the current transformation proposal began about two years ago. "We teamed up with MAPPA; we had a similar idea that this space is unique from a certain perspective, and we need to beautify the city center. Černá louka has enormous potential to be a green part of the city," said Šumbera. According to him, it has already been shown in previous years that Černá louka does not need to fulfill just the function of an exhibition space. During the COVID pandemic, a vaccination center operated there, and following the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine, the Regional Assistance Center for Help to Ukraine (KACPU) was established. "The functionality of Černá louka has been demonstrated. Its main purpose will still be the organization of exhibitions, conferences, or cultural events, but we want to focus on a broader range," added Šumbera.