The state sold the diplomatic district in Troja

Prague - The diplomatic quarter in Prague's Troja was purchased for 395 million crowns by Magic Carpet, which signed a contract with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday. This was confirmed to today's edition of Právo by the Ministry's spokesperson, Vít Kolář. Magic Carpet is fully owned by the company GES Real, which belongs to the Dutch company GES Holding. This is controlled by co-owner of Prima, businessman Ivan Zach.
    Fifteen companies originally expressed interest in the lucrative property in a public competition. However, in the end, only Zach's company submitted an offer, paying 395.1 million crowns for the entire complex, which is the minimum price required by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
        The participation of only one company in the competition was criticized by the opposition ČSSD, which unsuccessfully requested the Minister of Foreign Affairs Karel Schwarzenberg (TOP 09) to cancel the competition. Similar objections were raised by the anti-corruption organization Transparency International.
    The property was offered for sale by the Diplomatic Service, which is a contribution organization of the ministry. The reason is reportedly their financially unsustainable and inefficient maintenance. Other state institutions showed no interest in the complex, allowing it to be purchased by private individuals. The government agreed to the sale.
    The Diplomatic Service had previously offered apartments ranging in size from 176 to 260 square meters for rent. Some apartments have fireplaces, terraces, and winter gardens. Ground-floor apartments have front gardens. The complex of residential buildings in a quiet residential environment was designed by architects Jan Bočan and Zdeněk Rothbauer. The buildings housed, for example, the Afghan and Palestinian embassies. Employees of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) lived there. In 2002, the houses were damaged by flooding, with damages amounting to around 40 million crowns.
    According to the chairman of the GES Real board, Petr Babulík, the diplomatic quarter should be transformed into luxury residential housing after a complete renovation. He hinted, for example, that the typical grilles would disappear from the complex. "We expect that the character of the quarter will remain preserved, but we would like to modernize it," Babulík told Právo.
    "Despite all the risks, the project was evaluated as very interesting in terms of location. After obtaining all the necessary permits, which will take several months, we would like to revitalize the complex within a year," Babulík added, stating that it will be a standard development project.