The delayed project on the Annenský Triangle cost Prague 1 8.5 million

Prague – Work on the postponed project to pave the small square known as the Anensky Triangle has cost the city hall of Prague 1 8.5 million crowns. At today's meeting of the district councillors, the mayor of Prague 1, Petr Hejma (STAN), said this. The opposition, which has long criticized the plan, called it unnecessarily spent money. According to Hejma, this is an investment that will pay off once the project is completed.

The Anensky Triangle is located at the connection between Smetanovo embankment and Karolína Světlá street and was originally covered by grass. At the beginning of last year, the city hall had the soil removed in preparation for modifications including paving the area, constructing a water feature, cutting down a mature silver maple, and making an access passage through the embankment wall, known as the "capadlo".

A wave of criticism against the project arose from some local residents and the opposition in the council. Following the criticism, the city hall paused the work and had the construction site sealed while reworking the project so that it would not be necessary to cut down the maple. In July of this year, Hejma stated that due to rising prices, they were unable to come to an agreement with the construction company, the project is postponed until the maple's lifespan ends, and the grass will return to the area.

During today's discussion of the report on the city hall's finances for the first half of the year, the opposition criticized that millions of crowns had been spent on a project that ultimately did not take place. In response, Hejma stated that the contract for the work was signed back in 2017 and the city hall had to start the work, otherwise it would incur penalties. He added that of the total amount, 3.1 million crowns was for the project, of which 800,000 crowns was necessary to pay for modifications to the documentation to preserve the maple. The construction itself, according to the mayor, cost 3.6 million, and the rest of the amount consisted of operational and other costs related to the construction.

Hejma rejected the claim that this was wasted money. According to him, the construction included necessary investments that would have to be made anyway, such as repairing the sewer system. According to him, the investment will pay off once the project is completed. "At the moment the tree loses its vitality, we will continue with the implementation of this project because many people, on the contrary, are looking forward to being able to walk to the Vltava," he said.

The contract for the modifications was won a few years ago according to the public procurement bulletin by the firms OHL ŽS and Inpros Prague for about 21 million crowns without VAT. According to a recent statement from Hejma, the companies requested a price increase of about seven million crowns, which the city hall's management deemed uneconomical. Therefore, at the beginning of July this year, the city councilors approved the termination of the contract.

The councillors also discussed the report on the city hall's finances for the first half of the year today. According to it, the district ended with a surplus of about 1.5 million crowns, with revenues of 437.6 million and expenditures of 436.2 million crowns. Prague 1 has an approved budget for this year with revenues of approximately 825.4 million crowns and expenditures of 1.03 billion crowns. The difference is planned to be covered by funds from previous years, of which 130 million crowns is to come from reserve funds.