Brno-Central disagrees with the expansion of the urban heritage reserve

Brno – The municipal district of Brno-Centrum disagrees with the expansion of the urban heritage conservation area, into which more than half of its territory would subsequently fall. The mayor of Brno-Centrum, Vojtěch Mencl (ODS), told ČTK that such an extensive declaration of a heritage zone would cause many problems and represents an unacceptable intervention in the management and development of the city. The director of the National Heritage Institute in Brno, Zdeněk Vácha, informed ČTK that the new rules are specific and will not burden property owners.

Property owners in the heritage zone must obtain a binding statement from the heritage care department in advance for alterations to buildings, trees, or maintenance work. If the statement is negative, the intended action cannot be carried out. "The area of the proposed heritage zone in our municipal district is 594 hectares. The idea that anyone wishing to carry out any intention in this territory, which has a large number of buildings, parks, public spaces, and other properties, will have to meet this requirement is completely unrealistic," said Mencl.

The municipal council requested the Brno councilors to reject the declaration of the heritage zone Brno wider center and to reinsert buildings worthy of heritage protection into the Central Register of Cultural Monuments.

"By the end of September, we are collecting suggestions from the municipal districts, as the expansion of protection will affect not only Brno-Centrum but also Brno-North, Královo Pole, Žabovřesky, and Jundrov. Only Brno-Centrum is fundamentally against it, but the others have some comments, so we will address them and try to find an ideal solution. We will discuss the form of the heritage zones in the second half of October," said councilor for urban planning Filip Chvátal (KDU-ČSL).

Heritage experts are still working on the exact boundaries of the zones. "The aim of the proposed zones is to ensure the protection of historical and otherwise valuable parts of the city of Brno that have not been protected so far. The protective zone of the urban heritage reserve is not a blanket protection by law," stated Vácha.

According to him, the zones will bring clear rules also in the case of demolishing parts of the historical buildings. "The proposed Brno heritage zones are detailed and categorized based on the nature of the area, urban layout, and heritage values. Specific regulations will help preserve clear cultural values while not overburdening property owners in the planned heritage zones," added Vácha.

The first preparatory work for the Brno zone began at the National Heritage Institute as early as 2003. This August, from them emerged a proposal for the declaration of the zone Brno-wider center and Královo Pole - historical center as a heritage site. These areas are divided into four categories based on the level of protection. The strictest protection will be for part A, which includes, for example, most of the exhibition grounds. Part B will receive somewhat less attention, which includes areas such as Černá Pole or Štefánikova Quarter. Part C complements the character of the heritage zone, and part D does not affect it. "The division into four categories is optimal as it allows the continued full development of individual locations in relation to their urban quality," concluded Vácha.