The ministry decided against the reconstruction of Savarina, according to the company it is an old version

Prague – The Ministry of Culture has rejected the reconstruction of the Savarin Palace near Wenceslas Square in Prague, which was estimated to cost ten billion crowns. The city approved the project, but according to the ministry's conservationists, it would threaten the heritage reserve. This is evident from the decision available to ČTK. The developer group Crestyl, which owns the property, stated that it has asked Minister of Culture Martin Baxa for a review and that the project has already been modified compared to the original version from several years ago to comply with the remarks of the ministry's conservationists. The Slavonic Epic by Alfons Mucha was also supposed to be exhibited in the palace.

The Savarin Palace, also known as Sylva-Taroucca or Piccolomini, is a late Baroque palace building. The reconstructed complex was intended to cover an area of 1.7 hectares and, upon completion, connect Wenceslas Square with the streets Na Příkopě, Jindřišská, and Panská. The inner courtyard is planned to include, for example, a market, restaurants, or spaces for social and cultural events.

In February of this year, representatives of the capital city, the Mucha Foundation, and the Crestyl company signed an agreement on the placement of the Slavonic Epic in Savarin. The company was supposed to create the appropriate spaces for the cycle of 20 canvases in Savarin. The proposal for the agreement was approved by Prague councilors on January 31.

The property is owned by Savarin P.l.c., a company registered in Malta and controlled by the developer group Crestyl, through Czech companies Welwyn Company and Savarin HoldCo. According to the media representative of the group, Ondřej Micka, the project consists of two parts, with the first concerning the reconstruction of the historic palace, which already has building permission and began last year. The second part, involving modifications and reconstruction of the inner courtyard, is currently in the permitting process and is related to the ministry's decision.

With its decision in March, the ministry overturned the original positive opinion of the municipal conservationists from 2017, which is crucial for the construction. Ministry spokeswoman Ivana Awwad confirmed to ČTK that the project for the reconstruction of the inner courtyard created by architect Jakub Cigler's studio is "long-term completely unacceptable from the standpoint of state heritage care."

Micka, however, stated that the project now includes a number of modifications requested by the Ministry of Culture. "That is why we have already asked the Minister of Culture to review his ministry's decision. We are now waiting for his statement," he said.

He added that the company invited the studio of London architect Thomas Heatherwick for the modifications in 2019, and the current project is thus different from the one to which the issued decision pertains. "It has already received positive opinions both from the municipal conservation department and from the National Heritage Institute and has support from the Institute of Planning and Development of the City of Prague as well as from the leadership of Prague 1 and the municipal government. For completeness, I emphasize that we are considering similar matters in the schedule and plans, and it certainly has no impact on the project's implementation," the spokesman stated.

Petra Hrušová from the press department of the ministry subsequently confirmed that the negative opinion related to the original version of the project. "The Ministry of Culture expressed negative views regarding the originally proposed project by J. Cigler within the building proceedings, which is now being discussed in the appeal process," she stated, adding that according to the modified project, the ministry does not exclude the transformation.

Prague plans to place the cycle of paintings, the Slavonic Epic, in the reconstructed spaces. According to the signed agreement approved by the representatives of the capital city, the paintings should be exhibited in Savarin for 25 years after the completion of the reconstruction, with the option to extend the lease for another five years. The city will pay Crestyl for the rental of the space, with the total rental amount reaching hundreds of millions of crowns. This has been criticized by the granddaughter of the famous painter Jaroslav Mucha, Plocková. She stated that the city should utilize its own building, such as the reconstructed Industrial Palace. It is, according to her, undignified for the paintings to be housed in the underground spaces of a commercial center. The canvases are currently exhibited at the castle in Moravský Krumlov, where the city has loaned them until the end of 2026.

The Savarin Palace is located next to Wenceslas Square. The new design of the palace is meant to connect its inner courtyard with the streets Na Příkopě, Jindřišská, and Panská. The project includes the reconstruction of existing historical buildings and the creation of a new public space with greenery, an open area in the inner courtyard, and commercial spaces. It consists of four mutually interconnected separate parts, each of which will have a different character and utilization according to company information. Last year, the Crestyl group issued bonds worth 2.2 billion crowns to finance the project.