Study: The development of Brno may be hindered by unfinished infrastructure

Brno - Brno needs to quickly address its issues with incomplete infrastructure. Otherwise, the city's development may be impeded. Besides unfinished roads, outdated railways, and incomplete sewage systems, the construction of satellite settlements could also pose a problem while areas within the city remain unused. This is leading to increasing traffic congestion. This is stated in a study by the University of Economics (VŠE), which its authors presented to reporters today.
    The migration outside Brno is related to the lack of space for building apartments, factories, and offices in the center. Although there are many unused areas in the city, they are often old industrial sites with unclear ownership and environmental burdens. Therefore, investors are looking for other areas on the outskirts, and the city also risks that they will start encroaching on urban greenery, including spaces in residential courtyards.
    According to Milan Damborský from VŠE, the exodus of people to villages around Brno also has negative social consequences. "The ties between the inhabitants of satellite towns are always far weaker than in the city itself, not to mention the ties that develop in the countryside," he stated.
    According to the study, a weak point of the city is also the limited effort to retain highly qualified individuals. "This is a reminder to the business sector," Damborský said. He believes that scarcely any city in the Czech Republic has more university graduates per 1,000 inhabitants than Brno. Nevertheless, educated people are leaving Moravia for suitable jobs in Prague. "I don't understand why companies are relocating their headquarters to Prague. It may be related to the city's PR," Damborský mentioned.
    According to the investors themselves, although the city has sought-after engineers in technical fields, there are gaps in languages and communication. Wages in the region are also rising quickly, unemployment has dropped, and there is a lack of space for business expansion.
    However, according to Mayor Roman Onderka, the trend of the elite leaving for Prague has stopped. He claims that quality office complexes are emerging in the city, where Prague companies are establishing their branches and are gradually moving to Brno. "This is evident in real estate companies, which are always the precursors of development," he stated. According to him, people are beginning to appreciate cities as places to live. They are gradually realizing that while it may be cheaper to buy housing outside the city, they will not have access to a kindergarten, a shop, or a church in those places, Onderka said.