The town of Letohrad in the Orlickoústecko region is planning renovations of the historic square

Letohrad – The town of Letohrad in the Orlickoústecko region plans to renovate the historic square. It has prepared two variants of the study, which will be presented to the public on May 19. Mayor Petr Fiala (Association for Letohrad) estimates the total project cost at 40 to 50 million crowns.

"Our square does not have all the areas well organized. Pedestrians are heavily repressed here. The square is one large parking lot. Some parking options will remain, but it will be reduced to two-thirds of the current capacity," said the mayor.

The authors of the study propose planting new trees, benches, play elements in the pedestrian zone, water features in front of the church, and a fountain in front of the castle. On the side near the small arcade, church, and castle, the area should be primarily used by pedestrians, so that people do not have to weave between cars, according to the mayor. The Prague office Hlaváček architects proposed two variants.

"We will present them to the people. The main difference is whether the small arcade should have a one-way entrance or both an entrance and an exit separately," said the mayor.

A second-class road runs through the square; according to the mayor, cars drive there moderately because the square is on a hill. Towards the Pavlištova Gate, there is a narrow bottleneck, which drivers are aware of, added the mayor.

"We are more concerned with the surrounding areas. There is an old ugly asphalt near the castle, which would also be changed to a more reasonable form. The project is environmentally friendly, it retains and uses rainwater," said Fiala.

The councilors should decide on June 23 which variant the town will implement. After the New Year, the mayor would like to have the project documentation completed and the materials prepared for an application for a grant from European funds.

Václavské Square in Letohrad is rectangular, measuring 140 by 50 meters. On the longer opposite sides, there are burgher houses with arcades from the Baroque period. After a fire in the 19th century, they underwent significant period repairs. In the square, there is a Marian column, the castle that houses a museum, and the adjacent Baroque Church of St. Wenceslas.