Prague: Heritage protectors against the extension on the Food House

Prague - Heritage protectors from the Club for Old Prague are opposed to the plan for an extension of the building of the former Food House in Prague's Wenceslas Square. The current corner represents a harmonious element that is crucial for the overall effect of the square, the club stated in a notice on its website. The director of the municipal heritage department, Jan Kněžínek, told ČTK today that he is only aware of the plan from a letter from the club.
A residential building with a tower stood at the corner from the mid-1880s, which was damaged and subsequently demolished at the end of World War II. According to the club, the current plan refers to this. Heritage protectors point out that the earlier building overshadowed the surrounding structures and also obstructed the view of part of the National Museum, which was built as a dominant feature of the square.
The new building of the Food House, which was created based on the design of Maxmilián Gronwaldt and Jiří Chvatlina in the 1950s, rectified the previous mistake, club representatives stated. They believe it is merely an oversight that the building has not yet been "registered as a distinctive representative of architecture of its time" in the list of cultural monuments.
According to the plan, the former Food House is to be converted into a hotel, the club informed. The project, according to its representatives, is merely about expanding the building's area and is, in their opinion, "a pure example of inexcusable gold digging".