Two cubist houses could be relocated to the center of Prague

Prague - Two heritage-protected cubist houses, which were built according to the design of the significant interwar architect Josef Gočár, could reappear in the center of Prague after a complete renovation.
The plan for the rescue and relocation of the structures to the Malá Strana Klárov was presented to Prague 1 by the company Baba, which renovated the Grand Café Orient in the House at the Black Mother of God on Celetná Street. The Urban Development Commission of Prague 1 believes that the heritage asset, which has high historical and artistic value, deserves to be saved, said the commission's chairman Filip Dvořák to reporters today.
The proposal to move the houses to Klárov, next to the timber-framed house, is, according to him, a very provocative idea. "But it is certainly fundamental to discuss whether the structures deserve to be saved," he noted.
The wooden houses, built in the so-called national style, were originally three and stood at the first Prague airport in Kbely. They served as a restaurant, technical and administrative building. In the 1960s, they were relocated to the grounds of the Troja Zoo, where they were used as changing rooms and storage. In August 2002, they were flooded and have been deteriorating due to neglect. According to Dvořák, they are the only historical buildings of this type in the capital. The only other structure of similar character is a newsstand in Vrchlického Sady near the main railway station.
Documentation of the original appearance of the houses and their interiors has been preserved. The cost of renovating the buildings is estimated at ten to fifteen million crowns. However, it is still unclear who would finance it. Dvořák believes that after restoration, the houses could serve as a restaurant, museum, or exhibition hall.
According to him, the director of the Department of Heritage Care of the Prague City Hall, Jan Kněžínek, and architectural historian Zdeněk Lukeš are in favor of saving the houses.
There are several relocated monuments in the area of Prague. On the slope of Letenské Pláni, for example, are the Hanavský Pavilion and the Petřín Maze. Both structures were originally located in the Exhibition Grounds in Holešovice. The Church of St. Michael in Kinský Gardens on Petřín was relocated from Ukraine. It was supposed to be the basis of a planned open-air museum, which, however, was never established.