Prague councilors approved changes to the plan for the area around Florence, the association criticizes it

Prague - Prague city councilors supported two changes to the zoning plan that aim to allow Penta to build on parcels to the northeast of Masaryk Station and in Florenc. The council approved them at today’s meeting along with a contract regarding so-called contributions, which the investor will contribute to the city. Ultimately, the changes to the plan will be approved by the councilors, whose form is criticized by the nonprofit organization Arnika. According to Penta's spokesperson Martin Lánský, the company's contributions will amount to more than 300 million crowns.

Penta has already built an office building called Masaryčka on part of the land near Masaryk Station, which opened last year. The first of the changes to the zoning plan approved by the councilors relates to additional parcels of land to the east of the station, and the second parcel in Florenc includes the bus station. Penta purchased it along with adjacent land in 2023.

"We have a contract that guarantees that the area will look as it is drawn," commented Petr Hlaváček (STAN), the mayor's assistant for urban development, after today’s council meeting on the approved materials. He added that the contract also includes, for example, that Penta will transfer ten apartments from the planned project to the city. The company previously announced an architectural competition for the design of four blocks of houses in Florenc.

According to the Arnika association, one of the changes also involves the relocation of the bus station, which, according to Hlaváček, is not in the plan partly because the location of the station is determined by higher planning documentation. Although in the future, he believes it would be worth coming up with a concept for smaller bus stations on the city's peripheries, it is not currently on the agenda. "Today it's really not on the table, and it's premature," he said.

Penta’s manager Rudolf Vacek previously told ČTK that the company is in negotiations with the city and municipal parts regarding the station and that if the magistrate does not say otherwise, it plans to retain it. "We are working with a variant of relocating the bus departure area between the arms of the Negrelli Viaduct, where it has historically always been. The aim is to provide better facilities for passengers and to integrate the station into the area so that it does not create an impenetrable barrier," he stated. He added that the relocation would better connect buses with the metro and the future train station.

In the past, Penta, in collaboration with the capital city, announced an international urban planning competition, which served as a basis for the changes to the zoning plan. According to previous statements from city representatives, the contract with Penta includes, in addition to the transfer of apartments, adjustments to public spaces and the construction of a four-class kindergarten on Rohanský island.

According to Arnika, this is insufficient. "While Penta will make billions from the project, the city negotiated only ten apartments and one kindergarten - moreover in a different location, in Rohanský. That is really very little for extremely lucrative land in the center of Prague. The area will suffer from a lack of greenery, civic amenities, and affordable housing," stated Anna Vinklárková on behalf of the association.

Lánský from Penta told ČTK that the total value of the company's contributions will be divided between the magistrate and relatively according to the extent of the area between Prague 1 and Prague 8. According to him, contributions will also include the construction of civic amenities, greenery, or works of art, in addition to the aforementioned investments. "The agreement also includes an explicit commitment that construction in Florenc will not prevent the establishment of the so-called New Connection II, which is being prepared by the Railway Administration and will be a key transport construction for the future of the main station and Florenc," added the spokesperson.