Children of the Earth have appealed against the zoning decision for a new district in Plzeň

Plzeň – The Brno ecological association Děti Země – Club for Sustainable Transport is the only entity that has appealed against the planning decision for the construction of a new neighborhood in Plzeň costing around eight billion CZK. The developer Ameside from the Prague group Amadeus Real Estate (ARE) plans to build residential buildings, offices, and shops in the city center by 2027. ČTK has obtained the appeal from city and county officials, which was confirmed by ARE's media representative Karel Samec and Děti Země, who have also participated in the planning proceedings according to the Environmental Impact Assessment Act.

"We consider the appeal to be absurd and purely obstructive. It was submitted on the last possible day and completely lacks specific reasons for the appeal, claiming they will be provided later. Throughout the entire planning process, they did not submit a single comment. We are concerned about further delays of several months for the entire project if the authorities succumb to traditional activist pressure, even though it is completely irrational in this case," said Samec.

Děti Země will supplement the appeal with reasons within 15 days of receiving the planning decision, as they only learned about its existence through the media and do not know its content, stated Miroslav Patrik, the statutory representative of Děti Země, in the appeal. He also announced participation in the appellate phase of the planning proceedings.

"We are currently studying the planning decision that we received on Friday. We will provide the reasons for the appeal to the municipal office within 15 days, which will then publish it on the official notice board, and the participants in the proceedings and the applicant will be able to comment on it. Then it will be handled by the regional office in Plzeň," Patrik told ČTK. In a standard timeframe, the appeal should be resolved within at least 3.5 months. According to our experience with transport constructions, the appeal process takes a year due to various offices being unable to resolve it within the deadline, he added. For example, noise is dealt with by the Ministry of Health.

A source close to the project and the city of Plzeň expressed surprise at why Děti Země did not submit their comments to the investor or within the proceedings, so they could potentially be incorporated into the project. The Ameside complex is particularly situated on the site of an unused pit from a former cultural house that was demolished ten years ago. "According to the law, associations can participate in the proceedings right from the start, or they can apply until the appeal phase, and can only object to the content of the decision and binding opinions," Patrik stated. He claimed it is not any obstruction, but a standard procedure. "We want to find out whether the decision was issued according to the law and whether all public interests are taken into account, such as the environment, noise intensity, and air pollution," he added.

Ameside, which had an unappealable planning decision from the beginning of September, is working on a project to obtain a building permit. They plan to submit the application next year, with construction starting in 2024. The multifunctional center will include over 120 apartments, 21,000 m² of offices, and about 100 shops. A quarter of the area is designated for sports, leisure, and entertainment. Parking will be underground. The designs for the area opposite the main train station in Plzeň are the work of the London studio Chapman Taylor and the Czech AGE project. According to Mayor Pavel Šindelář (ODS), this is the first such extensive, conceptually new and modern neighborhood in Plzeň since 1990, which will change the character of the lower part of Americká Street and its surroundings.