The Ostravica Fashion House awaits renovation and expansion for 1.5 billion CZK

Ostrava - At the turn of 2012 and 2013, the well-known department store Ostravica could be reopened in Ostrava. The companies Amádeus Real and Ostravica Fashion, which acquired the traditional fashion house Ostravica located in Dr. Edvard Beneš Square in the city center along with part of the adjacent land, aim to create a fashion center for the entire region, said Jiří Hlinka, the media representative of the project, today to ČTK. The planned investment amount is approximately 1.5 billion crowns.
    The reconstruction and expansion of the Ostravica complex will increase the current area of 5000 square meters by more than five times. In addition to retail space, apartments and office space are also planned. The underground garages will provide about 320 parking spaces. The original building will connect with the new extension via a glass atrium. The project also includes greened roof terraces.
    The new Ostravica shopping center wants to build on the past of the once-famous fashion house. Foreign brands will be complemented by products from both established and emerging designers and manufacturers from the Czech Republic and Poland.
    "The object on the city's main artery will thus return to its historical status and function after a complete reconstruction and modern expansion, which it had among Ostrava customers," stated Hlinka. He added that the investor and developer, Amádeus Real, has already secured financing for the project.
    The city sold the land on Dr. Edvard Beneš Square to the consortium of Amádeus Real and Ostravica Fashion at the end of last year for approximately 83 million crowns. For the land with a total area of 5368 square meters, the city received nearly double the usual price.
    The Ostravica department store has been closed since 2000, when three ceilings collapsed during construction work, and it has not been reopened since. The land on the square has also been built upon in the past. Before the end of World War II, a classic urban block stood on this site. It consisted of the fashion department store, several tenement houses, and the German House with a summer dance pavilion. The building was damaged at the end of World War II and was demolished to some extent for ideological reasons.