Karlovy Vary dismissed the director of the orchestra and the architecture office

Karlovy Vary – The council of Karlovy Vary today dismissed the director of the Karlovy Vary Symphony Orchestra (KSO), Petr Polívka, and the head of the City Architecture Office (KAM), Petr Kropp. Opposition members in the council and other open letters have already protested this move. However, the city leadership rejects the objections and will announce an open selection process for the directors of both city organizations, spokesperson for the magistrate Jan Kopál informed ČTK today.

Karel Adamec will lead the City Architecture Office until a new director is appointed, and Josef Bernátek will lead the symphony orchestra. Mayor Andrea Pfeffer Ferklová (ANO) stated that the evaluation committees will consist of nine members, with a majority of experts in the respective field. Two members of the committee for selecting the director of KSO will be employees of the orchestra. The specific composition of the committees has not yet been determined.

The KDU-ČSL organization in Karlovy Vary protested against the dismissal. "Petr Polívka has successfully led the KSO since 2015 in both managerial and artistic terms. Petr Kropp is the soul of KAM, which he has transformed into a key institution over two years, ensuring a thoughtful and quality development of the city's public space. Both men are inspiring personalities with international experience and perspective. Such individuals are what we need to attract to our city, not to dismiss them," stated KDU-ČSL in their statement.

However, the council responded to the criticisms of the dismissal with a statement mentioning that the council reached this decision after 2.5 years in office, which included 2.5 years of collaboration with the directors. "It is clear from this that this is not a hasty or thoughtless action. The city council considers the dismissal of the directors as a completely legitimate tool within its competencies to responsibly manage the entrusted organizations. The city council resorted to this only when it believed it had exhausted all other tools available to the respective institutions for shaping the conceptual governance of the city," stated the council members.

"The city council declares its commitment to preserving both contribution organizations and humbly urges all citizens, organizations, associations, and so on, not to stir this serious situation, thereby allowing for the conduction of quality selection processes aimed at the smooth operation of the city, its management, organizations, and companies," the council members added.

The leadership of Karlovy Vary, composed of ANO, ODS, and Karlovaráci, had previously replaced the directors of Spa Forests, the Administration of Natural Healing Resources and Colonnades, and the City Social Services Facility.