Owner of the stall: Prague should wait with the exchange of stalls

Prague - Prague should wait for the replacement of stalls in Wenceslas Square until the reconstruction of the entire square, which is planned for the coming years. This is the opinion of Milan Janeček, one of the owners of sausage stalls. According to him, the replacement planned by the city for next year is a waste of money. Prague does not want to wait for the reconstruction. It plans to replace the current stalls with new ones designed by the studio Cigler Marani Architects. However, it has not yet initiated the selection process for either the suppliers or the tenants of the stalls. Current operators received termination notices at the end of the year.
    Janeček owns a total of seven stalls in the city center, four of which are directly on Wenceslas Square. He sells refreshments in all of them, primarily traditional sausages. According to him, the stalls do not need replacement. "Between 2004 and 2005, I replaced the stalls with new ones based on the requirements of the city hall and the district. The stalls meet all hygiene regulations and have been approved by conservationists," said Janeček to ČTK, who has been in this business for over 20 years.
    When his contract on Wenceslas Square expires at the end of the year, he will have the stalls dismantled and removed. He will also have to disconnect them from the utilities. According to him, the city cannot have the new stalls operational by January. Negotiating all the necessary permits takes several months to a year, according to Janeček. The reconnection will also need to be done again during the square's reconstruction. "It's uneconomical; they will unnecessarily do the same work twice," noted Janeček.
    All stalls standing on Wenceslas Square are owned by private companies and operators. Prague claims that the current contracts with sellers are disadvantageous. "It wasn't a classic rental relationship, but an encroachment where prices are very low," said Tereza Králová, spokesperson for the Prague city hall, to ČTK. According to her, the rent for the new stalls will be several times higher.
    According to Janeček, the operational costs of a stall amount to hundreds of thousands of crowns; he pays the capital city and Prague 1 a total of 160 crowns per square meter of occupied space daily, which amounts to over 70,000 crowns per month for one stall. Janeček claims he is willing to negotiate the rent. "No one from the city hall is communicating with us," he claims.
    Janeček also has reservations about the designs of the stalls from Cigler Marani Architects, claiming they are unsuitable for selling refreshments. He argues that there is not enough space for storing food and selling it. "We have noted opinions that the stalls are poorly designed, but the architects from Cigler Marani consulted the design of the stalls with experts. Every stall supplier can apply for the selection process and contribute their experience to the stalls," Králová responded.
    Currently, there are 23 stalls on the square selling refreshments, newspapers, and tobacco. All of them are expected to close by the end of this year, to be replaced by 11 new stalls. Initially, the city considered removing the sale of sausages from the stalls, but some people protested against it and organized a petition. Sausages will remain, but according to the city, the range of refreshments should be expanded. Newspapers and flowers will continue to be sold at the stalls, and there will be one information stall.
    Prague is also long-term preparing for a total reconstruction of the square. The project includes, among other things, increasing greenery, limiting traffic, providing more space for pedestrians, and restoring the tram line. However, according to the spokesperson, the start date is still unclear, so Prague does not want to wait for the stalls' replacement.
    Five years ago, the city attempted to completely remove the stalls from the boulevard leading from the National Museum to Můstek. However, the city hall's intention, just like this year, sparked protests and petition drives.