Pořískova waiting room at the Grain Market in Brno may no longer be a monument

Brno - The functionalist tram waiting room in Brno at the Obilní trh may no longer be a cultural monument. The reason is insensitive interventions by the construction company that was supposed to renovate the building. The proposal to revoke the monument protection is being considered by the Ministry of Culture, which began proceedings based on a suggestion from restorer Radek Ryšánek. According to him, the building has lost its monumental value, Ryšánek told ČTK today.

According to Ryšánek, the monument has been irreparably destroyed. "There was demolition of approximately up to half of the original building material, of which only rebar remains. This original material can never be restored," Ryšánek stated. The original construction technology and original ceramic tiles have also been irreparably destroyed, and the underground section with restrooms has been filled with debris and covered with concrete. According to Ryšánek, the building designed by architect Oskar Poříška has lost its technological and shape authenticity. "The building has therefore lost most of the values that we have come to associate with historical architecture," Ryšánek stated.

The Brno-střed municipality stated that the renovation of the building will take longer than expected. The originally selected construction company did not proceed according to the project documentation. Therefore, the local authority issued a new tender. "The Brno-střed municipality did not initiate the revocation of the site's monument status. We acknowledge the decision of the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, which states that it does not recommend the proposal to revoke the declaration of the stop as a cultural monument," said the municipal spokesperson Denisa Kapitančiková.

However, the ministry has not yet made any decisions. The suggestion it received from Ryšánek is considered justified. It has requested opinions from heritage experts, the Brno city hall, and the South Moravian Region Office. "So far, we have not received any statements. The deadline for concluding the proceedings or its outcome cannot be predicted in any way until a final decision is issued," stated ministry spokesperson Simona Cigánková.

Brno heritage experts disagree with the revocation of the building's monument protection. They admit, however, that the stop, which was previously a functionalist gem, has been damaged. "Restoration of modern architectural monuments is very complicated, primarily due to the often discovered impossibility of restoring the original materials affected by corrosion," said Zdeněk Vácha, director of the Brno branch of the National Heritage Institute. However, he sees no reason to doubt that the new construction company will maintain the original "noble shape silhouette of the building, into which the originally restored elements will later be returned or possibly supplemented with replicas of details that have not been preserved."