MKČR rejected the town hall's appeal against the construction of the gorilla pavilion

visualization: Zoo Prague

Prague - The Ministry of Culture has rejected the appeal of the Prague-Troja municipal office against the construction of the gorilla pavilion in Prague Zoo. According to them, the building in the upper part of the grounds is acceptable from the perspective of heritage conservation. Miroslav Bobek, the director of Prague Zoo, informed about the rejection of the appeal today on his Facebook profile, and the ministry confirmed the information to ČTK. The municipality has not yet had time to familiarize itself with the decision, said Mayor Tomáš Bryknar (Trojský kůň 2014).

The municipal office appealed against the decision of the city heritage officials, who do not oppose the construction. The appeal was handled by the Ministry of Culture. "It was primarily assessed with regard to ensuring the urban and architectural quality of the immediate surroundings of the designated heritage site, its panorama, and evaluating the project from the perspective of the suitability of the investment intention for preserving the cultural value of this heritage-protected area," stated the ministry.

The new gorilla pavilion in the upper part of the zoo is intended to replace the existing one, which is unsuitable mainly due to its location in the lower part of the zoo, which is threatened by floods. The spaces in the planned pavilion are two to three times larger compared to the current pavilion. In addition to the breeding group, it is also planned that a group of males unsuitable for breeding would be housed there.

The pavilion should have an area of 2,500 square meters and, according to the mayor, despite being partly sunken, it should be ten meters above the terrain. Such a construction does not belong under the historical estates of Hrachovka and Sklenářka, according to him. Prague-Troja also objects to the lack of a concept for the long-term development of the zoo and its facilities. The arrival of visitors by car to the zoo is significantly affecting the municipality, which has already seen over 1.4 million visitors this year.

Prague city councilors approved a development plan for the Troja zoo for the next five years in August. The document anticipates investments of up to 838.6 million crowns over the next five years. The gorilla pavilion, which along with related constructions is expected to cost a total of 121 million crowns, is classified as a construction of key importance in this document. The zoo is a subsidized organization of the capital city. The municipality has released funds for the construction of the gorilla pavilion. People have also contributed to the new pavilion. A total of 31 million crowns was collected from 17,659 donors, the zoo reported.