Suggestions for the appearance of the center of Karlovy Vary can be evaluated by the public

design by Cigler Marani Architects

Karlovy Vary - The designs from the architectural-urban competition for the future development of the center of Karlovy Vary can be assessed by the public starting today in the vestibule of the Karlovy Vary municipality. A total of 13 proposals address the area from Solivárna to the cable-stayed bridge over the Ohře and between Sokolovská and Moskevská streets. They show where the development of the city will likely head in the coming decades, said Karlovy Vary's Deputy Mayor Jaroslav Růžička (independent) to reporters today.
    Although the jury composed of experts recommended by the Chamber of Architects and city representatives appreciated five proposals, according to Růžička, this does not mean that ideas from other proposals cannot be utilized for further processing of the study of future urban development. "The proposals are not dogma. They are a suggestion of what is possible and necessary to do in this space in the future," stated Růžička.
    According to Ilja Richtr, head of the Department of Architecture and Urbanism, the proposals generally agree on two necessary changes in the busy city center. "One is the construction of a transportation terminal that would serve both public transport and intercity transport, in the vicinity of the marketplace, and the necessity to strengthen the transportation framework and alleviate traffic on the Cheb Bridge and the Republic Square," Richtr said today.
    Some of the works include very bold proposals. According to one of them, for example, an additional arm of the river would be dug on the western side of the meander of the Ohře, and an amusement park with a ferris wheel would be created on the resulting island, offering a view of the city center. Other proposals suggest connecting the city center and the upper train station via a cable car. However, experts believe these are economically difficult proposals to implement, albeit inspirational.