Praha 7 wants to build a new town hall in Bubny

Prague - The seventh municipal district aims to build a new city hall by 2016. The city leadership considers the land in the Bubny - Zátory area, owned by the company Orco, the most suitable location, Mayor of Prague 7 Marek Ječmének told journalists today. The city leadership is currently in talks with the company, and according to Ječmének, the company's representatives have preliminarily agreed on the location of the city hall.
    Orco plans to construct apartments, recreational areas, sports facilities, commercial and office spaces in the Prague Bubny railway area. They also intend to build a hospital and a university campus. There are several valuable industrial buildings in the area that were monumentally protected. However, this year the Ministry of Culture revoked the monument protection in part of the area at the request of the owner.
    Ječmének stated that the municipality could exchange the land for the construction of the city hall with the owner for another plot of land. Prague 7 would like to start building in the spring of 2010, with Ječmének provisionally estimating costs at 400 to 450 million crowns. The municipality aims to move not only civil servants into the new building but also the Vltavská Cultural Center and a health center.
    The Prague 7 city hall currently resides in a building owned by the Ministry of Finance, while the cultural center and health center are subleased in buildings of former transport enterprises. Annually, the city hall pays about 17 million crowns in rent. "The cultural center and health center also have a contract only until 2016, meaning the new building must be completed by the end of 2015," noted Ječmének.
    Prague 7 still has several alternatives in reserve. Another location under consideration is in Jankovcova Street near the Holešovice train station, where the construction of a central flood protection courtyard was contemplated. The land is owned by the municipality, but according to some councilors, the location near the station is "not sufficiently representative."
    Another possibility is the previously proposed space above the Vltavská metro station. "However, the metro vestibule would need to be reconstructed and the metro exit relocated, which would cost about 200 million crowns more. And currently, the municipality does not have sufficient financial resources for that," stated Ječmének.