The referendum in Velké Meziříčí ended in a deadlock

Velké Meziříčí - The future of the restoration of the historical center of Velké Meziříčí is unclear following the local referendum. A sufficient number of voters participated in the referendum, but only a few voted for the city to take steps to initiate the project preparations for the restoration of the center according to the winning design of the architectural competition. The results were published by the city on its website today.

In the referendum, people answered the question of whether they agree that the city should take all possible steps to begin project preparations for the restoration of the Square and the adjacent streets according to the winning design of last year's architectural competition. The results of the competition for the modifications of the center sparked disputes in the council, which culminated last month in the resignation of Mayor Radovan Necid (a member of ODS elected for the grouping To pravé Meziříčí).

Of the 9,373 registered voters, 3,492 participated in the referendum, which took place concurrently with the parliamentary elections. This represents 37.3 percent; a turnout of 35 percent was required for the referendum to be valid. In order for the decision to be binding, a majority of the eligible voters who participated in the referendum had to vote in favor, and at least 25 percent of all eligible voters had to participate. However, only 24 percent expressed a YES vote from the total number.

"The result of the referendum is therefore not binding. It is difficult to assess what this means for the city. It will not calm the situation; discussions will continue. I would like us to reach an agreement," said Deputy Mayor Josef Komínek (ČSSD) to ČTK.

The referendum was initiated by the civil initiative Za Náměstí VM after the city councilors rejected the repair of the square according to the winning design of architect David Mikulášek and decided to negotiate with the second-place contestant, architect Miroslav Cikán. They also did not approve a referendum on the winning proposal, although the initiative collected the necessary signatures for it. Ultimately, the court ordered the holding of the referendum. "We will see what happens next. It is still not possible to say how the development will proceed; we do not know how the councilors will respond," said the initiative's representative Tomáš Bílek.