In Velké Meziříčí, the renovation of the square has started for 286 million CZK, after 40 years

Velké Meziříčí - The long-prepared revitalization of the square and surrounding streets is beginning in Velké Meziříčí in the Žďár region. The work, costing 286 million crowns, will be carried out by the construction company Gardenline in phases until the autumn of next year. The last major renovation in the center took place 40 years ago, after the floods that hit the town in 1985. At today’s groundbreaking ceremony, Mayor Alexandros Kaminaras (for Together VM) told ČTK.

The architectural competition for the modifications in the center of Velké Meziříčí, with a population of 11,600, took place in 2016. Further preparations for the project were hampered by disputes over its design within the city council, and a local referendum was even held because of this.

"We are starting a major reconstruction of the square, which will take a year and a half and will represent the largest investment project in the post-November history of the city of Velké Meziříčí," said Kaminaras today. Machinery will start moving into U Bašty Street next Monday. Residents can expect a number of restrictions due to the construction. "We will strive to keep the entire square area as accessible as possible and, as permitted by the construction, also passable," he stated. The phases of the work are available on the website.

The revitalization will include the surfaces of the square and streets, greenery, furniture, technical networks, and traffic regulation. For example, the sewage system in the square is already a century old, according to water management experts. After the modifications, the square should be clean and pleasant for stays. The changes overall will not be dramatic, but they should be sustainable for up to fifty years. "And usually, those overly attractive things are not," believes the mayor, who is also an architect.

A new pedestrian priority zone will be created in the square. "But not a pedestrian zone that cars cannot enter; that would completely paralyze the square and the center of the city," said the mayor. There will remain 185 parking spaces, almost the same as before. "With the difference that they will be redistributed from the center of the square to the sides," he added.

The square will have new trees and water features in the form of misting systems and jets. "These are precisely the things that often attract mothers with children to the square because it is fun, and in the summer months, it brings welcomed refreshment," said the mayor. The church and town hall will be illuminated by lamps that allow for adjustable beam angles and colors.

The tapping of paving stones at today's groundbreaking of the center's renovation took place at Šebestiánské náměstíčko at the confluence of the Balinka and Oslava rivers.