Brno-Central will negotiate with the owner about preserving some buildings of Mosilany

Brno – The Construction and Urban Planning Commission of the Brno-střed district will negotiate with the owner of the former Mosilana textile factory about preserving some buildings so that the authenticity and identity of the site are not lost. The commission adopted a resolution this week stating that it disagrees with the planned wholesale demolition of the site, as proposed by the owner, Financial Consortium. This was stated by the spokesperson for the Brno-střed district, Kateřina Dobešová.

"The commission's resolution is declarative in nature; negotiations with the owner of the site will continue. Together with representatives of the city of Brno, we will seek a consensus on the future design of the site with valuable construction," Dobešová said.

The owner of the site, Financial Consortium, plans to build a modern residential district on the site of the former factory, which will connect with the Špitálka urban area that Brno is planning to develop.

"We would like to utilize the historical reference to the industrial past of the site from the days of Brno's Manchester during this reconstruction. However, most of the buildings are in a poor condition and have been deteriorating for decades, and none of them are protected as historical monuments," said company representative Ladislav Všetečka.

He also pointed out that the red buildings, which visually dominate the site, did not originally look like this at all. After their construction, they were plastered, and it was the previous owner of the site who painted them red. "The plaster was falling off and was in bad condition. Instead of having the façades restored, he simply had the remains of the plaster removed and the bricks painted red. Although the buildings resemble architecture found, for example, in Britain, the façades did not originally look like this," Všetečka added. According to him, the original appearance of the façades is clearly visible on parts of the buildings that face the railway embankment.

The association Za Brno nezbourané (For Brno Unbroken) is fighting for the preservation of part of the buildings at the Mosilana site. They demand that the owner keep some buildings standing and utilize them in the newly constructed area. "We appeal for the preservation of unique buildings that testify to a world-class textile history, which will otherwise completely disappear from the cityscape, irrevocably changing the face of Brno. We realize that this site has long been listed as a brownfield and that it needs to be transformed and new buildings constructed here. At the same time, we are convinced that there are valuable buildings here that recall a significant era of our city, which need to be protected from demolition and incorporated into the new environment," stated Michal Doležel (Together for Moravia), an ethnologist and regional representative on behalf of the association.

The Mosilana site was created after World War II through the merger of several factories on an area of about four hectares. The owner is waiting for planned changes to the urban planning regulation of the city of Brno.