MKČR: The owner cannot demolish the villa in Petřiny for now

Prague - Minister of Culture Daniel Herman revoked the heritage protection of the villa of Jiří Šalda in Prague's Petřiny district at the suggestion of his commission. His office will reassess it. The owner wants to demolish the villa and replace it with a new building. For now, however, it must be treated as a heritage site; demolition is not allowed, said ministry spokesperson Simona Cigánková in response to a query from ČTK.

The villa is known for the fact that the owner covered it with a black tarp some time ago, protesting against the earlier decisions of the heritage authorities. "In this case, where proceedings are still ongoing, the object in question enjoys heritage protection and must be treated in a way that does not diminish its potential heritage value. Demolition is therefore not an option until a final decision is made," the spokesperson stated.

The main reason for the minister's action was the inaction of the state heritage care authorities. "The heritage care bodies have done nothing to prevent the demolition. If another entity had not later submitted a proposal for the declaration of cultural heritage, nothing would have prevented the demolition of the building," stated the ministry. According to them, the owner thus gained a legitimate expectation that the building could be demolished.

The Ministry of Culture declared the villa a cultural monument in February. Šalda wants to build a new house in its place. Last year, Prague 6 granted him permission for its demolition. At that time, the villa was not protected as a monument. However, local residents disagreed and called on politicians to save the villa. A city councilor from Prague 6 for the Green Party, Antonín Nechvátal, submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Culture last year to declare the villa a cultural monument.

In November, the owner draped the house in a black tarp, supposedly to protest the authorities' actions, where one allowed the house to be removed and another, according to him, attempts to declare it a monument limit his ownership rights. If the property is a cultural monument, it cannot be demolished.

"As the Minister of Culture, who heads the system of state heritage care, I cannot tolerate such arbitrary and capricious approaches by the heritage authorities. On the contrary, I believe that heritage care must be carried out comprehensively and predictably based on expert and scientific principles and must not be subject to sudden external influences," quotes media representative Michal Donath the justification of Herman.

The apartment villa on Na Petřinách street, built in 1939, is attributed by some sources to architect Pavel Simonov. In the building permit, the architect Václav Všetička is listed as the author and appointed builder, Donath previously stated.