The construction of a warehouse for Amazon received approval again in Brno

Brno - The South Moravian Regional Office has once again issued a favorable opinion on the construction of a warehouse for the company Amazon in the Brno industrial zone of Černovická terasa. It was first issued this January, but throughout the year, the law on environmental impact assessment was amended. According to the developer CTP Invest, however, nothing has changed since the last opinion from the American internet company, said Tomáš Budař, the director for Southern Moravia, to ČTK. Amazon is therefore not planning to come to Brno yet and is looking for suitable locations in Central Europe.
Amazon abandoned its efforts for Brno after last year's negotiations of the then city council, which debated for half a year on whether they wanted it in the city or not. Only after a clear rejection from Amazon did the councilors vote that they would indeed like it. Since then, Amazon has maintained that it is not pressed for time and can choose suitable locations, especially after it opened a distribution center in Dobrovíz near Prague this year. However, CTP has been trying to finalize the efforts to obtain the necessary permits so that in case of interest from the Americans, the construction would be administratively prepared.
Regardless of Amazon, the Roads and Motorways Directorate is also working. "They are finalizing the zoning decision for the construction of the exit from the D1 motorway into the industrial zone, and CTP is buying additional land under the exit," Budař stated.
The regional office only supplemented its January opinion with a few partial conditions that the developer must adhere to during the construction or during operation. It took into account the comments of city districts, associations, and individuals who commented on the project last year, according to information in the EIA information system.
CTP previously stated that the free area would be occupied either by Amazon or possibly smaller investors with a different focus. Because of this, the city is primarily pressuring the Roads and Motorways Directorate (ŘSD) to expedite the construction of the motorway exit into the industrial zone as much as possible. This will significantly alleviate the overloaded traffic in Slatina. According to Mayor Petr Vokřál (ANO), the current situation is long-term unsustainable, and even companies already operating in Černovická terasa are inquiring about the new exit.
If CTP eventually builds a warehouse for Amazon, it must comply with dozens of conditions that the regional office included in the favorable opinion. People who opposed the project are primarily concerned about increased noise and pollutants in the air due to a significant increase in traffic. Key conditions include measures that will shield the housing project Slatina - Zelené město from the railway line and the massive warehouse and which will minimize traffic in Slatina and Tuřany as much as possible.
The number of cars in the affected city districts, which is already enormous, is expected to be significantly reduced by the motorway exit. Amazon's operation would burden the traffic in the area with hundreds of employees' personal cars and, according to the assessment, up to 360 trucks per day. The Americans promised at least 1500 job positions.