City Plans 8,000 Affordable Apartments to Fight Housing Crisis
Prague faces a significant challenge: skyrocketing apartment prices. The cost of living is impacting even the middle class. Apartment prices have jumped over 50% in just five years. Additionally, a third of Prague residents rely on rentals, which have also seen a 30% increase. This, coupled with a slowdown in construction due to recession, has created a critical situation. To address this, the Prague Development Company (PDS), a contributory organization of the capital city, plans to build up to 8,000 new apartments within the next 10 years. “Prague’s housing prices are comparable to Western Europe, but salaries here are much lower,” emphasizes Petr Hlaváček, deputy mayor for territorial development. “This creates tension within our society.” He adds, “We have the space for up to 80,000 new apartments. We can achieve this by revising spatial planning regulations.” The PDS currently has 50 projects in the pipeline, encompassing over 8,000 apartments spread across more than 800,000 square meters of land. These projects are expected to be completed within the next decade. “Many projects have already received approval, particularly those covering around 200,000 square meters designated for further investment preparation,” says Petr Urbánek, director of the Prague Development Company. “Others are still under...