The reconstruction of Prague's OD Kotva will begin at the earliest next year

Prague - The planned reconstruction of the Prague department store (OD) Kotva for billions of crowns is likely to start no earlier than next year. The construction office of Prague 1 has so far only received a request for partial modifications, said Martin Šebesta from the city hall's press department in response to a query from ČTK. Some tenants also confirmed to ČTK that their stores will definitely operate in the location until the end of the year. The department store has information on its website stating that "Kotva remains open for you even in 2020". The construction of the largest department store in former Czechoslovakia began in 1970, welcoming its first customers five years later, that is, 45 years ago.

The director of OD Kotva, Marek Vavřina, told ČTK last spring that extensive repairs, during which the entire building will remain closed for about a year, were expected to start this year. The owner of the department store, the investment company Pražská správa nemovitostí (PSN), has currently not provided specific information about the start of work. "The preparations for the reconstruction of OD Kotva are time-consuming, so it may take longer. However, we are doing everything to make Kotva as attractive and interesting for customers as possible so that they have a reason to come back," said Kateřina Jukl, PSN's marketing head, in response to ČTK's inquiry.

According to Šebesta, a change in ownership structure is being prepared for the department store. "Once that is completed, the construction office expects that the application (for reconstruction permission) will be submitted," he specified. The management of Kotva is currently negotiating with tenants, according to information from ČTK. For example, the sales director of the Czech clothing brand Pietro Filipi, Ladislav Pštros, said that based on a Thursday meeting with OD Kotva, they will definitely operate until the end of the year. "We plan to have the store open even after the reconstruction," he added.

The company PSN, in which the son of billionaire Václav Skala, Maxmilian Adam Skala, is a managing director, bought Kotva in 2016. Based on a decision from the Ministry of Culture, the department store was definitively declared a cultural monument last year. For the reconstruction, the owner has, according to Vavřina's earlier statement, approved documentation from the National Heritage Institute and permission from the original architects of the building, Vera and Vladimir Machonin.

Kotva, whose architecture has many supporters and opponents among the public, became a cultural monument after several attempts. The first initiative submitted to the Ministry of Culture to declare Kotva a monument, submitted in 2007, was unsuccessful. Another proceeding began in 2016 and in the fall of 2018, the department store was declared a monument.

However, the new owner of Kotva filed an appeal against this, arguing that he was overlooked as the new owner. The former Minister of Culture, Antonín Staněk (ČSSD), subsequently annulled the declaration of Kotva as a cultural monument and returned the matter to the ministry's heritage experts. The department for heritage care at the Ministry of Culture then declared Kotva a monument again.