Prague City Council today approved a transfer of ownership of a church building to the town of Pavlíkov, Rakovník region, for no consideration. In addition, the capital city also decided to acquire a number of plots of land in the town of Újezd nad Lesy, Rohožník location, from Czech Railways for a price of CZK 50.6 million that was determined by an independent expert.

The capital city owns a late-baroque parish church building located in the very center of the town of Pavlíkov in the Rakovník region in Central Bohemia. The real estate includes the church building and a courtyard with an area of 360 square meters. The church building used to serve as a depository for Prague’s Municipal Gallery has been abandoned and remains unused. The City of Prague came to a conclusion that it is a dispensable property, offering to transfer ownership at no cost.

“The church building is in poor technical condition and requires renovation. The property committee held a long debate about disposing of the asset, as the city does not need it. There was a suggestion to sell it in auction. However, I am happy that we eventually decided to donate it to the town of Pavlíkov. We took a lesson from the past when there were churches for sale in downtown Prague and the city was not interested, with one of the churches eventually becoming a brothel, for instance,” says City Councilor Jan Chabr who is responsible for municipal asset management.

The Church of St. Catherine in Pavlíkov is listed as a national cultural monument. It was built between 1776 and 1785 on the site of the former 14th-century cemetery chapel of St. Adalbert. The church building is surrounded by land owned by the town of Pavlíkov.

At its session on Monday, the Prague City Council also approved the acquisition of real estate in Rohožník housing estate in the town of Újezd nad Lesy from Czech Railways. Some of the plots of land that are subject to the transaction are mostly built up with roads that are owned by the capital city, some constitute public greenery or forests.

The total value of these assets, including buildings, is CZK 50.6 million, with the value of easements deducted. The purchase price was determined by an independent expert.