Prague heritage officials stand by the approval of the Máj reconstruction

Prague - The heritage conservationists at the Prague City Hall disagree with the criticism directed at the project they approved for the reconstruction of the Máj department store on Národní třída. This was communicated to ČTK by the city hall spokesperson Vít Hofman. The project has been criticized by the Club for Old Prague, which reached out last week in a letter to Prague Mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) and Minister of Culture Lubomír Zaorálek (CSSD). The Ministry of Culture stated that it will request and evaluate the decision made by Prague's heritage conservationists.

According to the club, the proposed modifications to the building will fundamentally change its shape and deform the heritage site unacceptably. By aligning the building on Spálená Street to the level of the neighboring Quadrio shopping center, the heritage site will lose its characteristic cascading silhouette, stated the organization. The club has requested the ministry to annul the decision made by the city’s heritage department.

According to the owner, Amádeus Real, the building needs reconstruction, and its appearance has been designed by the original proposal's authors, Martin Rajniš and Johnny Eisler. According to earlier information, the reconstruction is expected to begin this year and be completed in two years.

Hofman from the city hall's heritage department stated that the investor and the authors discussed various options, and the final proposal has evolved from the original. The final design, taking into account the pressure from the heritage conservationists, retains the well-known appearance of the building's façade facing Spálená Street, the spokesperson said. He added that the cascading silhouette will also be preserved.

According to heritage conservationists, the addition that will raise the building on Spálená to the level of the neighboring Quadrio is not problematic either. Currently, it is lower and follows the original urban layout. "The smooth transition to the original lower structures on Spálená Street was part of the project brief at the time of constructing the Máj department store, not the authors’ intent," Hofman conveyed the opinion of the heritage conservationists. After the original buildings were demolished and the neighboring shopping center was built, a height discrepancy occurred that the reconstruction will resolve. Moreover, the added mass of the building will be set back on Spálená, so it will not significantly alter its silhouette, the spokesperson stated.

According to Hofman, the city hall commissioned expert reviews from architectural historians Vladimír Šlapeta, Pavel Halík, Josef Holeček, and Patrik Líbal. "These reviews indicate that the authors of the submitted documentation have successfully connected with the language of the original Máj department store proposal and maintained its character," he stated. He added that the city’s Institute of Planning and Development also issued a positive assessment of the project. "The heritage conservation department, as an administrative body, therefore perceives the letter from the Club for Old Prague as superficial, inaccurate, and misleading, and it is questionable which project it refers to," Hofman concluded.

The department store at the corner of Spálená and Národní was built on the site of the Neo-Gothic Šlik Palace according to the design by Miroslav Masák, John Eisler, and Martin Rajniš from the Liberec studio SIAL, which was founded in 1968 by Karel Hubáček, the author of the Ještěd transmitter. Máj opened to customers on April 21, 1975. In 2007, the Ministry of Culture declared the building a cultural monument.