NSS did not decide on the change of the zoning plan for Prague in connection with Ruzyně

Brno - The dispute between two residents of Prague-Nebušice and the Prague City Hall regarding the city’s land use plan continues even after today’s meeting of the Supreme Administrative Court (NSS). The three-member panel did not decide on the proposal to annul part of the land use plan, which considers the construction of another take-off and landing runway at Prague-Ruzyně Airport. The court will decide next Tuesday, said the head of the panel, Josef Baxa, at the conclusion of the meeting.
The applicants, Petr Hlávka and Miloš Bělohradský, who own the land under the proposed runway and its surrounding area, are particularly bothered by the fact that the Prague City Council did not address all objections to the change in the plan. Additionally, the change did not include so-called noise protection zones for the new runway and did not have an environmental impact assessment available before deciding on the modification.
The runway is set to come 1,525 meters closer to the city center compared to the current airport boundaries, Hlávka stated. Noise would primarily increase over Nebušice, which lies almost in the runway’s axis. The airport has long argued that with the new runway it would almost stop using the secondary runway, where aircraft approach over Prague. Noise would therefore decrease in the area where it disturbs 150,000 people, but would increase in a sparsely populated area, said airport director Hana Černochová earlier.
The change in the land use plan arose based on a special law that declared the construction of a third runway to be in the public interest. The airport is now preparing the construction, conducting environmental impact assessments, and acquiring land. Construction is expected to start next year. Aircraft could thus begin taking off from the runway for the first time in 2009. The runway is estimated to cost between five and seven billion crowns.