Nikolajka’s winter season ends. An adequate replacement should grow in Jinonice
photo: Barbora Novotná, PrahaIN.cz/Hockey stadium, illustration photo
The Nikolajka winter stadium in Prague 5 will not open in the new next year, the city district wants to negotiate with the municipality to acquire land for the construction of a new one.
The owner of the stadium is the company NIKO Praha, which used to be the server Currently.cz informed that it is not possible to ensure the operation of the winter stadium in the following. The owners of ČTK said that they informed the town hall about the announcement and the city district did not offer any help. According to the company, the goal is to preserve the sports function of the building. The sports ground has been operating since 1961.
The stadium was used by hockey players from HC Smíchov, figure skaters from the Stadion Praha club and was also open to the public. According to the town hall, the building is in bad condition and the owner did not invest enough in it, even though they received a subsidy for it. “We have tried many times to reach a compromise with the current owner of the stadium, but there is no way to talk with him,” said the mayor of Prague 5, Renáta Zajíčková (ODS).
The town hall wants to negotiate with the municipality and private investors for short- and long-term replacements for the ice surface. The short-term could consist in covering the winter area on the leased land, the long-term in the construction of a new stadium. “We managed to get an investor who will provide the necessary financial cooperation, which can be used to implement a long-term and short-term solution. He has committed to operating, in the long-term variant, a new winter stadium,” said Prague 5 councilor David Dušek (STAN).
Zajíčková added that the town hall wants to be clear about where the new ice surface will be created by the end of the holidays. Later on facebook stated that the negotiated investor is the company Fermstav represented by businessman Slavomír Pavlíček, who co-founded the game studio Bohemia Interactive. The municipality signed a memorandum of cooperation with the company and sports clubs. “By preliminary agreement, two suitable plots of land in Jinonice were selected. Their owner is the capital city of Prague. The possibility of realizing the plan will be discussed with representatives of the municipality,” the mayor added.
The company NIKO Praha told ČTK that the operation of the stadium ended in a loss in the last year, to which was added a significant increase in operating costs this year. In addition, due to the long confirmation deadlines, the necessary reconstruction cannot be carried out according to the company. The operators said they informed the town hall about the situation. “The municipality did not offer us any specific help. Our goal is to maintain sports activities at the Nikolajka stadium in future developments, we are currently reassessing the reconstruction plan with regard to the cost of energy and water. Currently, from May 2022, the stadium is used for inline hockey, ” said the company.
There are several winter stadiums in Prague, for example at Výstaviště, Vršovice, Veleslavín, Braník, Grébovka Park, Stodůlky, Letňany or Strašnice. In addition, a number of temporary ice rinks operate in winter. In 2011, the city had the listed winter stadium in Štvanice demolished due to its poor condition. After its demolition, Nikolajka became the longest-running stadium in the metropolis.