Plzeň wants another legal analysis on how to resist the construction of a giant building

Plzeň - Plzeň city councilors want another legal opinion that will propose how to oppose the construction of a shopping center in the city center, which people rejected in a January referendum. The legal analysis presented today by the Mareš Partners office did not satisfy them, similar to the analysis provided by the city's lawyers. The councilors want to have a set of specific steps by the meeting on April 25 that will minimize the future payments the city will have to make to the investor for the damages incurred. The referendum bound the city to use legal means to prevent the construction.
    The city has initiated negotiations with the renowned firm Kocián, Šolc, Balaštík, with which the city hall is expected to finalize a contract next week. The opposing opinion, including the risk of compensations for the failed investment and lost profits, could be available to the councilors by the next meeting.
    "No one can quantify the damages precisely right now. We have proposed specific steps. The city leadership must immediately initiate negotiations with the investor (the Czech development company Amádeus Plzeň) and try to find solutions with them. At the same time, we propose to change the basic regulatory conditions of the affected area (the site of the demolished cultural center), which can begin immediately," stated partner of the office Alexandr Mareš, who prepared a supposedly comprehensive analysis of previous and future city actions in 32 pages.
    "I miss their practical impact on the councilors and the city. Changes to the zoning or regulatory plan are retroactive," said opposition councilor Marcel Hájek (Občané.cz). According to him, the investor acted in good faith, did not engage in any fraud, and has already invested about 1.2 billion CZK into the project. "We simply want to say what we should do. The investor attended council meetings and collaborated. The city failed because it did not have the area bound by a zoning or regulatory plan," said Petr Suchý from the opposition TOP 09.
    "It is hard for anyone to specify concrete financial damages or compensations today; that would be decided by the court," said Deputy Mayor Martin Zrzavecký (ČSSD). He is authorized to negotiate with Amádeus, which has been preparing the Corso Americká project for ten years.
    The councilors have repeatedly stated that they are concerned about possible criminal liability when voting on the city's further steps. "I also need to know whether I will cause greater financial harm to the city if I act in accordance with the referendum," stated Jaroslava Maříková (Občané.cz). According to Mareš, councilors can and must make decisions freely even when a local referendum has been held that rejected the construction. They do not have to agree with the future proposed steps of the city that will arise from the results of the local referendum. "They have a responsibility for the action, not for the result," he stated.
    The investor is willing to negotiate for the sale of the land, though not yet at the requested price, but according to Zrzavecký, he also pointed out that he has already invested considerable funds into the project preparation, which may affect the price. "We have initiated negotiations with him regarding the sale. We also propose a swap. No conclusions have been reached yet, but on April 17, we will discuss his conditions with the owner of Amádeus," he added. The city has already issued a negative opinion regarding the zoning procedure for the construction. However, the Plzeň construction office can still issue a zoning decision.
    Today, the city councilors rejected changing the regulatory conditions and announcing an architectural competition for the affected area, which would serve as the basis for changing the zoning plan. They will wait for another legal analysis. Zrzavecký has already received a letter from the investor stating that he will not terminate the lease of the peripheral lands intended for construction. Therefore, he will have them leased at least until June 30, by which time he can still meet the regulatory conditions set by the city council, mainly the fragmentation of the monoblock into partial parts.