People from all over the world have proposed ways to revive the abandoned village in Tachov

Vyskovice, the last remaining farmhouse of Engelbert Weigel, No. 2

Plzeň - Fifteen people from around the world, mostly architects, proposed how the depopulated borderlands of Tachov might be revitalized, specifically the abandoned village of Vyskovice near Chodová Planá. The best ideas will be further developed, after which discussions will begin with the citizens. The symbol of the dead locality is a single house and a chapel. Commission members told reporters today in Plzeň as they were selecting the best proposals. The international landscape challenge was announced by the European Capital of Culture Plzeň 2015.
    "The proposals came from Austria, Germany, Ireland, Serbia, Macedonia, Romania, Hungary, and the Czech Republic," said architect Klára Salzmann. Their authors presented a new function for the area. "And also specific 'emergency' solutions for the locality. That is, what can be done to make it usable right away and to make it friendly," she added.
    The story of Vyskovice is similar to the stories of many other municipalities in the borderlands, sharing the same fate. They were vibrant and inhabited before World War II, but now show no signs of life. Specifically in Vyskovice, the only agricultural building and chapel stand in a dilapidated state. After World War II, there were 170 people living in 33 houses. However, by 1965, the number had dropped to 12, and by 1970, the houses were torn down to just one. In 1974, the village officially ceased to exist. "It is a village that has all the essentials for a healthy living environment; it could be home to the disabled, children, seniors, and so on," said Salzmann. The area still appears in the land registry as built-up land and is protected against water and storms.
    According to Milan Svoboda from the organizing team, the authors of the best five proposals will be invited to Chodová Planá to refine their proposals, so they can discuss utilization with the citizens of Chodová Planá as well as residents on the German side. The results will be presented in a traveling exhibition, and the best proposal for an installation in the landscape will also be chosen and realized. A conference will also take place. "It will be an evolutionary, not a revolutionary process," said commission member Nigel Thorne.