Praha 5 supported the change of the Cibulka zoning plan, allowing the construction of a hospice

Prague - Prague 5 has supported a change to the zoning plan that would allow for the expansion of the historic estate in part of Cibulka Park into a children's hospice planned by the Vlček Family Foundation. This was approved today by the representatives of the municipal district. The long-neglected estate was purchased by the foundation of Avast antivirus company CEO Ondřej Vlček and his wife Katarína at the beginning of last year, and they are now completing the architectural competition for the design of the hospice.

"It was clear that we needed to build a new wing somewhere in Cibulka, which means a new building,” said foundation director Ivana Plechatá at the meeting of the representatives. Therefore, according to her, part of the land adjacent to the estate needs to be changed from park areas to mixed use in the zoning plan, which will allow for the expansion. The municipal district representatives supported the suggestion for the change with an overwhelming majority of votes. The final decision on changes to the zoning plan is made by the city council.

Opposition representative Karel Kryl (Pirates) stated that there could be a problem since the investor has not yet submitted a construction study, which is usually required for discussion by the city council's development committee. Zuzana Hamanová (for STAN), chairwoman of the municipal district's development committee, said that an architectural competition has been announced for the design of the building and no materials can be published until its results are announced. Plechatá stated that the results of the competition will be known on March 3.

The director also stated that there is no risk that something other than the declared facility for the care of children with incurable diseases would be created in the estate. According to her, the buildings are listed in the foundation's founding document and are legally non-transferable. "It is not possible to transfer the property to a commercial or other entity in any way; it could be again the foundation, which would, however, have to fulfill the original purpose again,” she stated.

The planned hospice is intended for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. It will also be designated for children whose treatment has already been exhausted and who need palliative care at the end of life. At the same time, according to information from the foundation, part of the building will serve the public - a café and a clubroom or a community room for educational, social, or cultural events are planned to be established there.

The fate of the unused estate has been under discussion since the 1990s, and it has been occupied by squatters several times. The former owner of the estate, Oldřich Vaníček, approached the Prague 5 City Hall two years ago with an offer to sell, but then changed his mind and began negotiations with another interested party. This turned out to be the Vlček Foundation. Ondřej and Katarína Vlček invested assets worth 1.5 billion crowns into their newly established foundation with the aim of building a children's hospice and palliative center.

The Vlčeks continue the activities of their six-year-old charity organization Zlatá rybka, whose mission is to fulfill the wishes of children who have life-threatening illnesses. The assets of their family foundation come from Vlček's 25 years of work in Avast, which has become a successful global software company over that time. His wife Katarína is a doctor working in the mobile hospice Cesta domů.