The demolition of the house at Wenceslas Square is complete

Prague - A building has disappeared from the corner of Václavské náměstí and Opletalova Street, where a new office building is set to rise in the future. Alexandra Drozdová from the Best Communications agency, which represents the owner of the demolished structure, Flow East, informed ČTK. In the coming weeks, workers will be clearing rubble. The investor has already applied for a building permit, and construction of the office building should begin next year. A part of the public and experts opposed the demolition of the building in the past.

The clearing of the construction site and the removal of debris will continue over the next several weeks. At the same time, the building permit process for the new office building is underway. If everything goes according to plan, construction should start next year and be completed within two years. The total costs for the project, including demolition, exceed two billion crowns. Flow East is currently preparing documentation for the tender for the main contractor of the construction.

The company owned the building since 1994. The plan for its demolition once sparked controversy when parts of the public and the professional community opposed it. The demolition order was issued by the Building Authority of Prague 1 in September 2013, but after appeals, the magistrate revoked its decision in June 2014. The company eventually succeeded in obtaining the permit this year. Due to discrepancies, the zoning proceedings were also repeated. A petition against the demolition was created, and opponents of the building's demolition organized several demonstrations.

Prague's monument preservationists granted approval for the construction of the new building on the site of the now-demolished structure in 2010, which is required for any building in a heritage reserve. A year later, the Ministry of Culture confirmed it in the appeals process, which subsequently definitively rejected the heritage protection of the building.

The demolished structure was originally designed by architect Josef Schulz, who is also the author of the National Museum, among other works. It was completed in 1880 and underwent renovations in 1920. The ornate and detailed facade of the building was replaced with a simpler form. While some attribute the renovation to architect Bohumír Kozák or his involvement in it, according to the developer, "none of the architects claimed authorship of this building in their published materials."