Investor Šantovky Tower wants to remove the deputy from decision-making

Olomouc - The company SMC Development, which wants to build the Šantovka Tower near the historic center of Olomouc, has called on the city council to exclude Deputy Mayor Aleš Jakubec (TOP 09) from further official decision-making regarding this project. According to the investor, Jakubec is a radical opponent of the plan. This follows from a letter from SMC Development, which was addressed to the city council leadership on September 13, and a copy of which is available to ČTK. Jakubec told ČTK today that he is proceeding impartially.

The 75-meter-high Šantovka Tower has been discussed in Olomouc for years. Heritage protectors and some experts oppose its construction, claiming it would damage the historical panorama of the city. The investor claims the opposite and pointed out in the September letter that the city council committed in a contract from 2010 to cooperate on the Šantovka project. The Šantovka Tower is currently in the zoning process.

"Aleš Jakubec has long publicly campaigned against our intention. His activities raise very serious doubts that he could assess any issues regarding the Šantovka Tower plan impartially and exclusively in the public interest, especially close to municipal elections," the letter states, signed on behalf of SMC Development by Richard Morávek, Luděk Schmidt, and Ivan Gerši. The investor also wants the city council to consult its approach in the zoning process in advance.

Jakubec told ČTK that the council defined his competences. "If someone wanted to exclude me from the discussions, it would have to be the council that would take away my department of concept and development," he stated. He said that the Ministry of Culture insists on a height limit of 23 meters for buildings in this part of Olomouc due to the protection of the historic center. "I truly do not feel biased here. I have been saying all along that I want to set height limits that should apply in this area as the Ministry of Culture wants, which is a guarantee of public interest for me," he added.

Jakubec does not feel bound by the 2010 contract regarding the Šantovka Tower. According to him, the councilors voted at that time on cooperation with the investor, which only concerned the construction of a tram line around the Šantovka area. According to Jakubec, it is hard to imagine that the city would commit itself in advance to cooperate on the development of a location without knowing exactly what it should look like. "The entire project (Šantovka) has also changed," he pointed out.

According to the Mayor's Deputy Martin Major (ODS), to whom the letter from SMC Development was also addressed, the contract from 2010 is valid. Major could not answer whether it applies to all parts of the new Šantovka district project. According to him, the letter should be taken with a grain of salt. "It’s an election period, and both politicians and entrepreneurs resort to greater measures," he believes.

The Ministry of Culture banned the construction of high buildings in the protection zone of the heritage reserve in Olomouc, which was reflected in the zoning plan from 2014. The court then annulled the height regulation. The council did not discuss the change in the zoning plan in the summer, and the council did not approve a temporary construction ban near the center either. Therefore, the preparation of the Šantovka Tower can continue.