The Ministry of Justice has acquired the Karlín barracks property

Prague - The building of the former barracks in Prague's Karlín, which the Ministry of Defense unsuccessfully tried to sell in the past, now belongs to the Ministry of Justice. In response to a query from ČTK, its press department stated this. Some time ago, the office requested the transfer of management rights for the building with the vision that a justice palace could be established in the complex.

The ministry has not yet specified which specific courts would be located in the former barracks of Jan Žižka. "The Ministry of Justice plans to use the complex for the future needs of Prague's departmental organizational units," wrote Jakub Říman from the press department. This would mean that alongside the courts, some state prosecutor's offices or centers of the Probation and Mediation Service could also relocate to the area. However, Prague already has one extensive judicial complex at Na Míčánkách in Vršovice.

Justice Minister Robert Pelikán (ANO) previously announced his intention to sell the historic court buildings in the city center. He also pointed out that the Karlín project is a matter for the coming years, as the current priority of the ministry remains the construction of a justice palace in Ústí nad Labem. In response to the question of how and with what costs the office will care for the Prague barracks to prevent them from deteriorating, the ministry replied that "it is conducting ongoing maintenance." "We have only been managing the area for a short time, and the costs associated with maintenance cannot be reliably estimated at this time," it concluded.

The Ministry of Defense stated that the costs of maintaining the area are low, amounting to 300,000 crowns annually, because part of the building was rented out.

The original tender for the purchase of the barracks, which were damaged by a flood in 2002, was won by the company of entrepreneur Ivana Tykačová with an offer of nearly 590 million crowns. The state required a minimum of 581 million. However, Defense Minister Martin Stropnický (ANO) halted the competition due to suspicions of financial ties between the winning company and another participant in the selection process. Subsequently, the ministry issued a statement that the information about the financial connection of the companies was not true. In the subsequent second round, no one expressed interest. This time, the ministry requested at least 620.2 million crowns.

The historic barracks building dates back to the 19th century and was used for military purposes during both Czechoslovakia and the Czech Republic. In the second half of the 20th century, various units and facilities of the Prague military garrison were housed in the area, such as the garrison band, military police, command, or infirmary.