In Prague 5, a historic villa has started to be demolished, locals are protesting

Prague - Workers began dismantling the roof of a historic villa located at the foot of Petřín in Smíchov on Monday. The owners, hidden behind a network of Cypriot companies, plan to completely rebuild the First Republic building and expand into the adjacent garden. Local residents are protesting the plan, having organized a petition and submitted requests to several institutions. About 2500 people have signed the online petition so far. Today, about 30 of them gathered in front of the villa while the workers continued their work.

The villa is situated in a heritage conservation area. Although the building permit refers to structural modifications and an extension, according to co-author of the petition Vít Makarius, it will effectively replace the existing structure with a new one that has four times the floor area. The new house is intended to serve as a family villa with an area of 1566 square meters. "We believe that the decision is not in accordance with the relevant regulations, particularly those that protect the local heritage conservation area," he said today. The petitioners also object to the fact that the building office of Prague 5 did not directly inform neighbors about the construction process, merely posting a notice on the official bulletin board, which no one was aware of.

Local residents have also requested the Ministry of Regional Development and the Ministry of Culture to review the positive assessments from the magistrate's Urban Development Department and the Heritage Care Department. On Monday, the Ministry of Culture called for a halt to the work until the review is completed. According to Makarius, one of the neighbors has also appealed against the joint zoning decision and the building permit. According to Prague spokesman Vít Hofman, the magistrate received the file on Monday, and it is currently too early to comment on the case.

The mayor of Prague 5, Radka Šimková (Prague 5 for Us), stated on Facebook that she has urged the villa's owners to stop the work and negotiations. Nevertheless, the building is held by a limited liability company controlled through a chain of Cypriot firms. The actual owner is untraceable, and intermediaries negotiate on their behalf. The neighboring villa also has the same owner, which should remain preserved more or less in its current form.

Prague 5 submitted objections in the building proceedings, which the building office rejected. The municipality did not appeal afterward. Deputy Mayor of Prague 5 Radek Janoušek (Prague 5 for Us) said at today’s municipal council meeting, after residents' inquiries, that the municipality did not appeal also considering the experiences from previous similar cases. "With very high probability, it would not be possible to stop it (the project)," he said. He finds it unfortunate that the neighbors were not informed about the plan by the office. He also mentioned that the municipality relied on the statements of the investor's representatives, according to which the project was discussed with local residents. He added that further negotiations with the owner's representatives should take place next week. Makarius called on the municipality's leadership to actively engage in saving the villa.

Local residents refer to the house as Schieszl's villa, named after the First Republic politician Josef Schieszl from the close circle of collaborators of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. Schieszl lived in the villa. One of the petitioners is also the director of the Post Bellum association and the leader of the Memory of the Nation project, Mikuláš Kroupa, who recalled the politician's complicated fate during the Nazi occupation and the communist regime. Kroupa described the owners' intentions regarding the villa as disrespectful to history and the heritage of ancestors.

This is not the first similar case in this area. Two years ago, similar resistance arose against the plan to demolish a villa from the early 20th century located less than a kilometer away on Nad Výšinkou street. This villa was then owned by Valérie Haščáková, the wife of Jaroslav Haščák, co-owner of the investment group Penta. After intense criticism of the demolition from local residents and politicians, the villa changed hands three times and eventually ended up in the possession of the investment group Rockaway Capital, where it still stands.