The Olomouc Town Hall will not file an objection against the height of the planned hotel near Šantovka

Olomouc – The Olomouc City Hall will not file an objection against the planned height of the hotel, which is set to be built in another part of the new Šantovka urban district. The proposal to submit an objection was made by the mayor's deputy Tomáš Pejpek (ProOlomouc) at the city's council meeting in December, but it was unsuccessful. Pejpek believes the ten-story hotel is too tall and that its construction will negatively impact the panorama of Olomouc's historical center. He stated this on social media. The development group Redstone, in which entrepreneur Richard Morávek has a stake, is preparing to expand the Šantovka urban district.

"The city council rejected my proposal that the city challenge the hotel construction part of the Šantovka-2 project in the administrative proceedings. The hotel will consist of a large horizontal slab with a height of 38 meters, which is nearly double the height allowed by the local zoning plan. The mass of the hotel will intrude into views of the city's historical panorama from the south, and according to expert opinions from the city's architect office, the architecture commission, and an external review, it will negatively affect the perception of the urban heritage area," said Pejpek.

According to him, however, the city council was convinced by the presentation of investor Morávek and architect Robert Bishop, who designed the urban district.

The last part of the new Šantovka urban district is planned to be built by the Redstone group on a three-hectare plot near the center of Olomouc. The project will complement the existing shopping center Galerie Šantovka and includes the construction of several buildings with shops, catering establishments, a theater and concert hall, and a four-star hotel, residential area, and office space.

The construction of the AC Hotels by Marriott is expected to cost more than 400 million crowns. The Redstone group previously reached an agreement for collaboration with the international hotel chain Marriott. Redstone also plans to build a hotel under the same brand in Pardubice.

Part of the new urban district project in Olomouc is the 74-meter-high Šantovka Tower building. Heritage protectors and architects oppose its construction, arguing that it would damage the historical panorama, while Morávek claims the opposite. Ombudsman Stanislav Křeček is seeking to annul the zoning decision for the construction of Šantovka Tower issued by the Olomouc magistrate through a so-called public interest lawsuit at the Olomouc regional court.

The regional court rejected Křeček's lawsuit again last March, and the ombudsman submitted a cassation complaint. The Supreme Administrative Court then granted a suspensive effect to it in the summer. Until the NSS decides on the cassation complaint, the magistrate may not issue a building permit to the investor.