Heritage protectors will probably have to speed up their administration during the building permit process

Prague - Heritage conservationists will have to provide their opinion during construction proceedings, usually within four weeks. Currently, they have no deadline. This is stipulated by an amendment that the senators from the cultural committee recommended for approval today. The upper chamber will discuss the legislation as a whole next week.
    The amendment to the Act on State Heritage Care assumes that heritage conservationists should express their opinion on the construction proceedings within 20 working days of receiving the application. If they do not provide their opinion within this period, the administrative authority could make a decision without their viewpoint. However, the proposal also allows for an extension of the deadline in particularly serious cases by an additional ten days.
    According to the authors from the Karlovy Vary region, the amendment aims to ensure prompt processing of applications for opinions on the restoration of cultural monuments or buildings in designated heritage areas. "Timely expression from state heritage care has the greatest impact on the adherence to deadlines in administrative proceedings. Because opinions are often submitted late, the region must extend deadlines for processing applications in many cases," previously stated the spokesperson for the Karlovy Vary region, Andrea Bocková.