Mayor of Prague reveals Congress Centre hopes

The Mayor of Prague Adriana Krnáčová has praised plans for a Prague Congress Centre extension. The proposed extension to the Congress Centre consists of needed exhibition surfaces and of the creation of quality public spaces in the site of the Pankrác square and its surrounding areas. The New PCC international competition is looking for solutions for the space of the Congress Centre´s surroundings. It has invited architects, urbanists and others experts to work together. “From an economical point of view, the convention tourism is very important for the city, but currently, the Congress Centre does not fulfil its full potential and that represents a loss for the whole city of Prague. I am convinced that the architectural competition for the new exhibition spaces is the adequate generator in making the Congress Centre once again a competitor to Vienna, Berlin or Munich, “ says the Mayor of Prague. The Congress Centre general director Roman Ray Straub added: “When it is decided upon where should the biggest conferences occur, the cities of Vienna, Berlin or Paris are the ones to be selected, though we have also competitiveness in the Czech Republic. “We do not want to be somehow bigger or just spend some money, but we in fact really need an extension, especially for the accompanying exhibitions, without which today a convention or similar events cannot occur. Thanks to conventions, the city receives new businesses, money, as well as other opportunities. I think that with this extension we will be able to offer something to the Prague 4 city district as well as to the whole city of Prague – open it towards culture, schools and other activities.“ “The expansion of the exhibition space would solve the last obstacle which prevents the Prague Congress Centre to rank among the top European congress centres and it would ensure the regularity of returns of major European conventions to one of the top European destinations,“ added Prof. MUDr. Vladimír Tesař, head of the Nephrology Clinic 1.LF of the Charles’ University and of the General University Hospital in Prague and the patron of the Ambassador Programme Prague Convention Bureau. The deadline hand-in for the proposal in the first round is the 17 March 2017.