In Bzenec, due to the castle, Mayor Čejka resigns after 20 years in office

Bzenec – After nearly 20 years in office, the mayor of Bzenec in the Hodonín region, Pavel Čejka (from KDU-ČSL), resigns during today's municipal council meeting. He stated this to ČTK. All five members of the council will resign. The reason is the deteriorating local castle, which is owned by the municipality. The leadership wanted to sell the castle to an investor who would renovate it. However, residents decided in a referendum last October that the town should keep the castle.

Today's Právo highlighted this concerning the city's management. Čejka told ČTK that he announced his resignation last year after the referendum but deemed it important to complete the financial year and approve the new budget for this year. "At today's municipal council meeting, we will step down. I do not want to be part of something I fundamentally disagree with. We will give the opposition a chance to fulfill its intention," said Čejka, who is serving his fifth term as mayor. He disagreed with the purchase of the castle by the municipality even before he became mayor. According to him, the town does not have the funds for repairs.

The town purchased the castle in 2002. The Bzenec Castle Winery, located in close proximity to the castle, expressed interest in the neo-Gothic landmark, where it has leased cellars. The winery previously presented a plan for the castle's reconstruction and the establishment of an interactive viticulture museum with facilities and a multifunctional hall. City councilors leaned towards the sale, while the opposition wanted to keep the castle under municipal ownership. People decided in the referendum that the town should keep the castle. Among the opponents of the sale was opposition councilor Miroslav Goliáš (Choice for the City), who stated that rescuing the castle is currently being addressed and the priority is the most urgent work.

The coalition in Bzenec consisted of KDU-ČSL, Independents, KSČM, Mayors, and personalities for Moravia, while the opposition included Choice for the City, ODS, and Moravians. It is still unclear what will happen next. "I do not want to preempt events, but there will be an election for new leadership. For me, health comes first, rather than listening to insults from the younger generation," said the seventy-two-year-old Čejka.

The castle in Bzenec was built between 1850 and 1858 on the site of a demolished Baroque castle. Before it stood a Gothic fortress on the same spot. In recent decades, the castle has been deteriorating and has no use. Bzenec has around 4,400 inhabitants and an annual budget of approximately 110 million crowns.