The representatives of Slaný have given the green light to the revitalization of the historical center

Slaný (Kladensko) - The councillors of Slaný have given the green light to the revitalization of the historical core of the city. They have already agreed to modifications of Vinařická Street and Masaryk Square, and today they approved the remaining part of an extensive revitalization study, which includes modifications to Husova Street. The city aims to secure funding from the European Union for the repairs of the historical center.
    The study was prepared over several years by a team of architects led by Professor Jaroslav Sýkora. Experts divided Slaný into 22 sections, and EU funds are expected to flow toward the reconstruction of three of them - Vinařická Street, Masaryk Square, and Husova Street. Modifications to Husova Street have not yet been approved. "As for the other sections, we are not pressed for time, but in the case of Husova Street we are, because it needs to be part of the grant application for spring 2009," stated Mayor Ivo Rubík.
    The revitalization of the city center will require multi-million investments. "This is still just a study. Only when a complete implementation project is done will it become clear how much it will cost," said Deputy Mayor Pavel Bartoníček to ČTK. Up to 92.5 percent of the total costs for revitalization can be covered by European funds, while the remainder will be financed by the city budget.
    Extensive surveys and analyses were necessary for the preparation of the study. One major unknown is mainly the underground of the city, with its complex of various sewers and corridors. "It is a medieval town - and that’s how it looks underneath. There are sewer pipes that are laid out in a manner that is absolutely incomprehensible from a modern perspective," Rubík noted earlier. The town hall has mapped the underground to a depth of 7.5 meters. However, some houses have cellars that extend up to three stories deep, reaching 16 meters below street level.
    The streets of the historical core have not been significantly reconstructed for a long time; traces of the last renovations are, according to architects, more or less rough interventions into the urban heritage zone, introducing foreign materials or inappropriate elements of urban furniture. The historical center of Slaný, according to experts, is currently conceptually and stylistically disorganized, with the former traffic solution continuing to imprint its character on the streets, where the square served as a bus station.