Three-fifths of the metropolis’ residents know what the Metropolitan Plan is. Prague citizens expect it to primarily address housing and transportation issues. According to them, individual city districts and the public should have the main influence on its content. These findings come from a new study conducted by the STEM/MARK agency for the Strategeo Institute and its Prague Agenda initiative.
The STEM/MARK survey shows that 14 percent of Prague residents have a good understanding of what the Metropolitan Plan is, while another 48 percent have heard of it. However, respondents perceive the document as somewhat unstable, changing with each city administration.
Height and width
Regarding the plan itself, most respondents believe that new development should occur both by densifying the city and by expanding outwards, with a balance between the two. If they had to choose, a larger portion prefers metropolitan expansion (32%) over densification (18%).
Those who favor densification are also in favor of high-rise construction, in designated areas outside the historic center. “Significant sociographic differences have emerged: younger people under 30 are more often in favor of densification. This is also influenced by higher education as well as some satisfaction with the quality of life in Prague,” commented STEM/MARK’s chief analyst Jan Burianec.
Overall life satisfaction in the metropolis is 74 percent, with an average rating of 7.2 on a scale from one to ten.
Addressing the housing shortage
Respondents primarily expect the modernized spatial plan to help solve the two most pressing issues: according to Burianec, these are the housing shortage and improving traffic flow in the city. “Expectations are high; respondents could select multiple answers. The most important category for them is better use of former brownfields, typically the Žižkov or Bubny freight stations, but it also includes other matters mostly related to construction and traffic,” Burianec added.
According to Ondřej Boháč, director of the Institute for Planning and Development, the new plan should respond to these demands by making spatial planning more efficient and accelerating construction. Compared to the current document, it includes height regulations and plans for new districts on existing brownfields. Boháč states that the plan allows for the construction of up to 350,000 apartments.
Tomáš Rychecký, director of STEM/MARK, further noted: “The Metropolitan Plan is perceived more as a political issue than a professional process. This should change in some way. There is a clear demand for stability and for the Metropolitan Plan to persist as a new urban development concept for Prague.”
Architecture and heritage protection
The data come from research conducted for the Strategeo Institute and its new Prague Agenda initiative. The survey is the second in a series that the institute plans in connection with a series of debates on Prague-related topics. In the previous survey, the city’s residents identified what they consider the biggest problems in Prague.
According to the founder and president of the think tank, economist and publicist Jan Macháček, upcoming topics will include issues of construction legislation, affordable housing, traffic, brownfield development, architecture and height regulations, and heritage protection.
The current Prague spatial plan has been in effect since 1999. Its update has been in preparation for 13 years and could be approved by city councilors by mid-this year.
Presentation available for download
Photo credit: CAMP