The representatives will again discuss the urban plan of Prague on Thursday

Prague - Prague city councilors will meet on Thursday for an extraordinary session to reconsider the city's zoning plan. The ODS is likely to support the TOP 09 proposal to halt the preparation of a new zoning plan and to develop a so-called metropolitan plan. This groundbreaking change in urban planning has found its supporters, but also its opponents.
    The proposal had already been approved by the council twice. However, before the last meeting, a letter from the Ministry of Regional Development (MMR) arrived at the city hall, which criticized Prague's approach. The materials presented by Deputy Mayor Tomáš Hudeček (TOP 09) were withdrawn from the agenda because of this.
    Hudeček wants to prepare a simpler zoning plan than before; the document should only set maximum burdens for the area. According to Hudeček, the plan will not need to be changed often, thus limiting the space for corruption.
    A petition was also created in support of the metropolitan plan, signed by, for example, the rector of the Academy of Fine Arts (AVU) Jiří T. Kotalík, Pavel Hnilička from the Czech Chamber of Architects (ČKA), and architect Josef Pleskot. Experts say that both the existing zoning plan and the proposed plan, which will be discussed for halting, are outdated, reflecting the 1970s. They are unfriendly and incomprehensible to people, catering only to individual interests. "Prague must finally have a mature and contemporary plan in line with current European trends," they stated in a joint declaration.
    On the contrary, opposition councilors spoke out against it. The Greens consider the proposal to be a "thoughtless experiment" that will not lead to greater transparency. If approved, Prague will find itself, much to the delight of developers, without a valid zoning regulation as early as 2016, the Greens stated in a press release. The city should establish the position of chief architect.