The company Amádeus Real will offer the dilapidated Ostravica for sale

Ostrava - The company Amádeus Real, which owns the dilapidated complex of the former Fashion House Ostravica-Textilia in the center of Ostrava, will offer these properties to the Ministry of Culture and subsequently to Ostrava, specifically to the city district of Moravská Ostrava and Přívoz. If they are not interested, the company will sell the properties at a public auction. Jan Piskáček announced this on behalf of Amádeus Real today through Czech News Agency (ČTK).
     The department store has been closed since 2000, when the ceilings collapsed during an unauthorized renovation, and it has been deteriorating ever since. The company Amádeus Real, which owns Ostravica, purchased the adjacent lands from the city a few years ago on Dr. Edvard Beneš Square with the intention of renovating the department store and developing a new multifunctional building with shops or offices adjacent to the historic structures. However, the company has now withdrawn from the purchase agreement because the district refused to grant permission for the placement of the building, thus blocking the zoning process according to the private company. The department store has not yet started renovations; according to Piskáček, this was supposed to occur concurrently with the construction of the new shopping center.
     The company Amádeus Real was supposed to pay the city over 83 million crowns for the land, of which around 54 million crowns has already been paid. The city will likely have to refund this amount. In addition, the company also intends to seek compensation for the damages incurred.
     The Deputy Mayor of the Moravská Ostrava and Přívoz district, Dalibor Mouka (Ostravak movement), previously stated that the district had justified demands on the company. For instance, he requested credible information on how the company cared for the adjacent historic properties during the period of ownership of the land, but according to the Deputy Mayor, he did not receive this information.
     According to Piskáček, the district intentionally thwarted the project. "The company Amádeus Real fulfilled its obligations under the concluded contracts properly. The project at the beginning of this year was heading towards the issuance of a zoning decision and would have proceeded with further steps to commence construction,” Piskáček stated, noting that construction was supposed to start this year and finish in 2014.
     Due to the dispute with the central district, the city leadership in Ostrava plans to change the status so that in case of selling city lands to investors, the city would have an influence on the subsequent zoning decisions or building permits.
     Ostravica consists of three historic buildings, two of which are under monument protection. The third, corner building, the company Amádeus Real intended to demolish. In the past, the company has been criticized by some city residents, claiming that it did not adequately care for the deteriorating properties. A petition for the rescue of what was once the most luxurious department store has been created, which has so far been signed by over 5,500 people.