Historic train station faces demolition

PraguePost: Conservationists and developers at odds over disused Žižkov depot

A bitter, decade-long battle over plans to redevelop an abandoned cargo railway station in Žižkov will drag on after Prague 3 Town Hall announced it wants another study of the site before any final decision is made on whether to approve the controversial project.

Sekyra Group, one of the country's leading real estate developers, has been leading a push to transform the historic Nákladové nádraží Žižkov into a new "city" complete with offices, a commercial center and apartment housing for up to 15,000 people.

It argues that a new boulevard to be constructed through the neighborhood is essential to handle traffic flow, but believes the only practical path for the road goes through the present position of the station.

Opponents of the move, however, argue the large three-wing station building is a rare surviving example of Functionalist industrial architecture and must be preserved.

The Culture Ministry declared parts of the Nákladové nádraží cargo station a cultural monument in December 2010, but the decision was immediately appealed by Prague 3 officials and developers.

The station began operation in 1936 and was a well-known European example of modern railway logistics. Its formal service ended in 2002, and today it is used only as a warehouse.

"Nákladové nádraží Žižkov is one of the best-preserved industrial buildings in Prague," argues Naďa Goryczková, the general director of the National Heritage Institute.

"At the time of its development, it was appreciated as a progressive and modern building. It represents the principles of Czech industrial architecture from the time of the First Republic," she added.

"But it can also have a new function today because of its individuality. Similar complexes around the world are used as prestigious new city quarters."

Late last month, Goryczková, along with the head of the Transport Minister's Office, Tomáš Mikeska, toured the proposed redevelopment site with Prague 3's deputy mayor, Matěj Stropnický, to discuss possible usage of the building if it is eventually declared a cultural site.

"There are sometimes the speculations that after becoming a cultural site, it will be very problematic to make any reconstructions of the building. But there is a big difference between, for example, a Gothic castle and a train station," said Stropnický, the Prague 3 official who is responsible for the issue.

 "The industrial building can be used again, for example as a cultural center. The management of the district has agreed that we will require planning studies for the whole area," Stropnický added.

The construction director of Sekyra Group, Leoš Anderle, has rejected suggestions that development can proceed without demolishing the now crumbling building, and he has hit out at the announcement of a further study.

"This is interference with property rights. ... To compare the Freight Railway Station Žižkov to [something like] the National Theater is, in our opinion, highly inappropriate. The historic value of the building is questionable, and it can't be fully used and maintained in its present condition," Anderle said.

Sekyra Group claims internationally renowned architects have also questioned the value of preserving the historical site.

The company cites architect Eva Jiřičná, who recently stated that only fragments of the existing railway station could be preserved.

"It seems unlikely to me that the building, designed in the early 20th century mainly for storage purposes and built with a very limited structural system, could be used for commercial, cultural, administrative or other purposes in the full existing form, unless there are large funds provided by the government or other institutions," Jiřičná said.

"From a commercial standpoint, such a solution is very unlikely. Existing commercial facilities near the Freight Railway Station Žižkov must be considered, and so do the requirements resulting from the new project," she added.

Jiřičná doesn't believe the requirements of the Conservation Committee can be met because they "bring about the risk of the total decay of existing buildings and a long delay of regeneration of this part of Prague."

Professor Vladimíra Šlapeta, another expert cited by the Sekyra Group, has argued that the railway station isn't particularly special in the context of similar European industrial buildings of its era, and says there were similar buildings in Prague as well.

"In terms of good town-planning strategy of a large and attractive area that raises a big challenge for architects, city government, investors and residents alike, the conservation of the area is completely unfeasible; it would seriously complicate the overall spatial design of the new buildings, which is something the questionable conservation value can't compare to, once the original function is lost," Professor Šlapeta said.