```html Conservationists are opposing Jánské Koupele, owners want to revoke the protection. ```

Staré Těchanovice - The workers of the National Heritage Institute in Ostrava are preparing a statement for the Ministry of Culture regarding the heritage protection of the dilapidated complex of the former Jánské Koupele spa in Staré Těchanovice in the Opava region. Their current owners have requested the removal of the heritage protection. However, the institute considers the protection necessary. This was communicated to ČTK today by Petra Batková on behalf of the Ostrava heritage institute.

The owners of Jánské Koupelí are since last year Opava entrepreneur Petr Lex and tennis player Tomáš Berdych. According to the media, they want to build a tennis academy there and are likely to demolish at least part of the former spa.

Heritage experts see the value of Jánské Koupelí primarily in the preserved urban concept of the complex. "If individual buildings in the Jánské Koupelí complex remain cultural monuments, it certainly does not mean that the current state, which is definitely not good, should be conserved," said Michal Zezula, the director of the Ostrava branch of the National Heritage Institute.

According to him, the institute welcomes efforts to revitalise the complex, but it is necessary to ensure the preservation of those architectural and historical values that can be retained. "We are convinced that new functions can be realized here using the preserved parts of the original complex, even though we anticipate a high degree of tolerance towards reconstruction interventions from the side of heritage care," Zezula stated.

The Jánské Koupelí complex consists of 11 buildings with land located in the valley on both sides of the Moravice River. They have been on the heritage list since 2005.

"The consequences of long-term neglect are evident in individual buildings, their structural-technical condition is very poor, with some even being in a state of emergency. The complex was included in the List of the Most Endangered Monuments in the Czech Republic at the initiative of the National Heritage Institute. Nevertheless, we are convinced that the majority of the buildings can be preserved and restored," Batková stated.

The Jánské Koupele spa was founded in 1811 when the first spa house was built. In the 19th and the first half of the 20th century, the spa was very well-known, treating diseases of the heart, circulatory and respiratory systems, skin diseases, gout, and rheumatism. During World War II, the spa was used as a training center for the Hitler Youth and a prisoner of war camp, and treatments were halted. After the war, the buildings became sanatoriums and recovery facilities. In 1993, they were closed, and since then, they have been mostly falling into disrepair.