Five major developers polled by Hospodarske noviny about the impact of Prague’s plan to make them pay for the construction of schools and sports facilities said it would raise the final price of apartments. While they claim to support the city’s initiative, they called upon officials to be careful while they create the framework for the new conditions. In fact, as the paper points out, local city halls are already forcing developers to include other functions in their projects. But the practice changes from district to district. The city is more concerned about rising prices than it is the slow speed of development of new projects. It believes the new rules would help developers get through the planning process more quickly. The city is pushing for the new rules should be incorporated primarily in areas where a change to the zoning plan is needed. It’s arguing that when the necessary planning is in place, the value of the land jumps. “So developers should cover their fair share for the construction of infrastructure or public space,” says deputy mayor Petr Hlavacek.
