In the next year, it will be clear who will build the courthouse in Ústí

Ústí nad Labem - The selection of the contractor for the judicial palace in Ústí nad Labem will take place next year, if the government approves its construction. The project has been awaited for 18 years. The current building is insufficient for the regional court, which rents space in the center. A large courtroom will be created in the Litoměřice court building for the North Bohemian judiciary. Among other things, the main hearing in the ROP Severozápad case will take place there. This was stated to ČTK by the spokeswoman of the regional court, Veronika Suchoňová.

"Work is currently underway on the project documentation for the procurement procedure," she stated. In 2016, the then Minister of Justice Robert Pelikán (ANO) stated that his department had secured 1.7 billion crowns for the construction. According to his previous statement, the building was supposed to open in 2021.

Talks about building a new judicial complex for the Ústí court and the public prosecutor's office have been ongoing since 2002. The current building, which has been in operation since 1974, does not meet the needs of the court. It is located in a floodplain area. The building has been flooded multiple times during floods. The new judicial palace is to be built in the Bukov district.

Due to a lack of space, both the regional public prosecutor's office and the district public prosecutor's office have already left the regional court building. Both institutions are currently renting space in private buildings in the city center. The new building is expected to house the regional and district court along with the public prosecutor's office, the Probation and Mediation Service, a branch of the Ministry of Justice, or the Ústí office for state representation in property matters.

The building by the Elbe River can no longer accommodate the entire regional court. This year, it rented office space in the Palace Zdar in the center for administrative judiciary needs. "This situation is caused by the increase in ... agenda and the related need for a higher number of employees," Suchoňová stated. Investments continue to be required in the building on Střekov due to its poor condition, the latest being the installation of air conditioning in several courtrooms.

The size of the courtrooms is becoming a problem. "In some types of criminal proceedings, the number of defendants and victims is increasing," the spokeswoman noted. Therefore, one large courtroom will be created at the court in Litoměřice. The case of ROP Severozápad is to be discussed there in the second half of 2021. The public prosecutor has filed charges against 27 local politicians and entrepreneurs in this case.

In the past, there was also talk of constructing a new district court in Most. The state owns the land for this purpose. "The construction of a new court building is currently not on the agenda," said Radka Heresová, the chairwoman of the Most court, to ČTK.

In October 2013, President Miloš Zeman together with Minister Marie Benešová (ČSSD) laid the foundation stone for the non-existent judicial palace in Ústí. The completion date was then estimated at 2018.