The expansion of Prague brings many problems, says Petra Kolínská
According to Deputy Mayor for Territorial Development Petra Kolínská, after a year of adjustments, the plan is ready to be reviewed by the Department of Territorial Development, and therefore one step closer to its completion. “I expect a heated discussion on the proposal to build high-rise buildings, for example, on the Pankrácká plain or in the Vysočanské údolí,” he tells Metro Kolínská.
The draft of the so-called metropolitan plan was part of a whole series of changes during the last year. Which will be the most essential for the future life of the people of Prague in the capital?
A year ago, we asked the development team to modify the proposal to make it more understandable. So that the builder knows what he can build, and the citizen knows what is going on around his home. The expert group recommended protecting the already existing network of civic amenities – this mainly concerns schools, kindergartens, cultural facilities and medical facilities. The questions were around the protection of green spaces, as known from the current plan. How successful the team has been will be shown by the public discussion that awaits us next year.
Why is it important for Prague? plan in the future to have?
The new spatial plan takes into account both the experience of the past years, and I project new strategic goals onto the map. The territorial plan that applies today is based on knowledge of the territory twenty or more years ago. According to him, it is possible to build, but the new plan will allow us to respond to the needs of the people of Prague in the 21st century. Commenting on and modifying the draft metropolitan plan will take several more years, I expect the plan to be approved in 2022.
The subject under discussion is regulation of the height of new buildings. Where could the strictest rules apply in the future, where, on the contrary, could the “giants” grow?
The protection of the monument reserve and the monument zone is essential. In most other areas, the developer proposes to stabilize the current height level. I expect a heated discussion about the proposal to build high-rise buildings in a number of places. Above all, it concerns Pankrácká plain and Vysočanské údolí, i.e. the area from Holešovice through Libeň to Vysočany.
I appreciate that the developer wrote the suggested number of floors directly into the map. Therefore, everyone can participate in the debate.
Do I count the metropolitan plan with the building of other Prague housing estates? Will there be any regulation of the existing ones?
More than a third of Prague’s residents live in housing estates. That is why I want the quality of life in housing estates to be strengthened. In particular, the protection of green areas and the addition of civic amenities. It will be possible to supplement the areas on the edges of the existing housing estates with apartment buildings.
However, the center of gravity of new construction is in the so-called transformation and development locations. There are around fifteen of the largest and they make up eighty percent of future construction activity.
What is the capital’s biggest construction shortfall that the plan would help solve permanently?
Over the past decades, Prague has grown primarily in width. This brought with it many problems: the infrastructure on the outskirts of the city is not sufficiently developed, it is extremely expensive to serve the outskirts of the public transport, the occupation of agricultural land is irreversible. It is much more advantageous for the city to divert its energy into the use of areas within the city (land after factories or railway stations). I appreciate that the new spatial plan has the ambition to stop the expansion of the city into the countryside.
The plan also addresses the panorama of Prague as a whole. Which parts of it will be protected the most?
Special attention is paid to the protection of the historical core of Prague, the defined triangle Prague Castle – Vítkov – Vyšehrad. Two panoramas – the view from the Prague Castle ramp and the view from the Petřín lookout tower – are to be a binding part of the new plan, according to the developer.