People can express their opinions about the future of the land at Špejchar with decaying villas

Prague - People can express their opinions on the future shape of the land between Milady Horákové Street and the railway line in Prague-Bubench, where dilapidated historic villas are located. The company Lordship, which owns the land near Špejchar, in cooperation with Prague 6, the capital city, and the Institute of Planning and Development of the Capital City of Prague, has initiated a so-called test planning, which aims to find the best architectural solution for the so-called Hradčanská interface. Prague 6 informed about this today on its website.

"We are trying to find solutions to restore dignity to the place. We want to find the future of the Hradčanská interface through participation. I am really glad that the investor and owner of the land accepted the offer of participation in the form of test planning, in which the public can also get involved. The result should be the best architectural solution for how to handle the land," said the mayor of Prague 6, Jakub Stárek (ODS).

Local residents and the general public can participate in the test planning through an online survey at https://hradcanskerozhrani.cz until May 23.

On Tuesday, May 14 at 6:00 PM, a neighborhood meeting will take place near the villas at 108 Milady Horákové Street. According to the city hall of the sixth district, the aim will be to map the values and problems of the current state.

Test planning is used in Switzerland or Austria for complicated areas or locations where there is no consensus among the main actors on the shape of their development. Compared to architectural competitions, this planning method tests different development variants and contributes to ensuring that all parties agree on how the area should look in the future.

"Three to four teams will participate in the test planning, working in parallel in a non-competitive environment. The entire process will be overseen by an advisory committee composed according to the rules for jury competitions of the Czech Chamber of Architects. That is, with a majority of independent Czech and foreign members," noted Petr Návrat from the planning office ONplan, which is organizing the test planning process based on an agreement between the local government and the investor.

The tragic state of historic buildings, especially Kočí's and Roškota's villas built at the beginning of the 20th century between Hradčanská and Letná, has been addressed for many years. The company Lordship previously came up with several proposals for new construction, including plans to build a large administrative center in place of the villas. It encountered resistance, and in the meantime, the villas continue to deteriorate. They are now covered with a black tarp for safety reasons.