Developer will not sell the land after Transgas, wants to build again himself

photo: iRozhlas.cz

Prague - The developer no longer wants to sell the land resulting from the demolition of the group of buildings Transgas on Vinohradská Street in the center of Prague. The demolition of the 1970s buildings, which the state refused to protect as cultural heritage, is expected to be completed by the end of the year. The project's owner, HB Reavis, has returned to the original plan instead of redeveloping the site. Jakub Verner told ČTK about this today on behalf of the company.

Architect Jakub Cigler is revising the project, which is set to include more residential spaces. Initially, only office and commercial spaces were planned. According to Verner, it is not possible to estimate when construction could start due to the necessary permits.

In February, HB Reavis announced that it plans to sell Transgas or the already empty land. The capital city previously expressed interest in the complex, wanting to preserve the buildings and relocate up to 500 municipal officials into them. However, representatives of the municipality and the owner could not agree on the price.

"When we announced in February that we were withdrawing from the Prague real estate market, we had three projects: Merkuria, Radlická, and Transgas. We sold Merkuria and Radlická, and in the case of Transgas, we did not agree on our ideas and the ideas of the investors who wanted to buy it at that time. We decided that we didn't necessarily need to sell it and we would continue with our own project," Verner said. He noted that the attractiveness of the site in the city center also played a role; available land is slowly becoming scarce in any major European city.

"We are preparing the construction again with Jakub Cigler. The approval process for the original project took eight years, during which some things could be improved, so we said: let's take it back to the drawing board," Verner added.

"By the end of the year, the site will be cleared and preserved, and the demolition of the above-ground part of the complex will be completed," Verner said. The tower buildings and the former dispatch building facing Vinohradská Street have been removed. Another building that was part of the Transgas complex and closely adjacent to the radio building is not being demolished as it is not part of the development project and does not belong to HB Reavis.

"We will create a passage for Český rozhlas to the underground garages. We are convinced that the entire area must remain fenced. The construction of the new project will begin after obtaining all the relevant permits from the building authority," Verner added.

The complex of buildings of the former Transgas Central Gas Dispatch and the Ministry of Fuels and Energy was located near Wenceslas Square. It was the work of the team of Jindřich Malátek, Ivo Loos, Zdeněk Eisenreich, and Václav Aulický. The plan to demolish the complex of buildings has sparked debates about the architecture of the socialist era, which has both supporters and critics.