V Brně vznikla petice proti demolici části bývalé káznice

Brno – A petition has been created in Brno against the planned demolition of part of the former prison on Cejl street. It collected nearly 100 signatures in one day. Its author and documentary filmmaker Jan Plachý told ČTK that he wants to submit it to the city on Thursday, which will be the Day of Remembrance for Victims of Communism. City representatives claim that the demolition is part of a project for the establishment of a Creative Center and has support from heritage conservationists. The center will be created for artists at a cost of hundreds of millions of crowns.

The building authority of the Brno-North city district has started the zoning process, of which the demolition is a part. ČTK was confirmed by the district mayor Martin Maleček (SOL). According to the petition, the wing along Bratislavská street, including two side wings, is to be demolished. Therefore, its authors urge people not to allow the trivialization of the demolition of a significant part of the prison complex. They point out that the prison housed victims of Nazism from across Europe, victims of the Heydrich terror, Jewish transports, and political prisoners from the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, as well as victims of communism, Catholic poets, and resistance fighters and heroes.

"I would like to achieve at least 100 signatures, and if circumstances allow, I would like to submit the petition with historians on Thursday," said Plachý, who, as a documentary filmmaker, is filming with former inmates who were imprisoned on Cejl.

Brno's Councilor for Culture Marek Fišer (Pirates) reminded that a study regarding interventions in the building has been created. Heritage conservationists and project documentation processors have used this as a basis. According to Fišer, all authors in last year's international architectural competition for the design of the center utilized the possibility of demolishing the wing along Bratislavská street. He stated that the demolition would reveal the baroque core of the building, thereby highlighting its significance and value. Fišer indicated that the Creative Center project would strengthen the value of the monument, improve a brownfield site, and support entrepreneurs in the creative industry. He believes the new public function of the area will also lead to better conditions in the excluded locality of the city.

Former Deputy Mayor Matěj Hollan (Žít Brno), under whom the project was developed, told ČTK that the demolition of the modernly attached wing along Bratislavská street stems from the decision to memorialize the prison and is supported by the National Heritage Institute and the Department of Heritage Care. According to him, keeping the wing would jeopardize the entire project.

The former prison is located in an excluded locality where many socially disadvantaged people live. The city has made the most necessary repairs, costing several million crowns, to prevent the building from further deteriorating. The Ministry of Culture declared the building a cultural monument two years ago, so stricter rules will need to be followed when building the Creative Center. The building is already occasionally animated by cultural events, theaters, or concerts.

Independent and shared offices, studios for artists, open workshops, editing rooms, a café, a music club, or a hall with a capacity for 250 people could be created on-site. The prison was built in the 18th century. It served its purpose from 1784 to 1956. It was replaced by a prison in Bohunice.