Štvanice Island in Prague

The main aim of the design is to create from Štvanice an island of culture and sport with the maximal preservation of greenery. The island is divided by bridges into three parts. We place in the first western part with a view of Prague Castle concert halls, a summer amphitheatre and an outdoor sculptural exposition. The proximity to the centre and the exceptional view of Prague Castle offer an ideal location for such buildings and in the 18th and 19th centuries when the island was a popular place for excursions there were also theatrical stages here. We set the large hall as a separate island in the River Vltava, by which we want to express its extraordinariness. Near Hlávkův Bridge, there are two more halls of lesser size. In the second part of the island, we have left the tennis complex, which should only be cultivated and complemented by a restaurant with a café. We place in the third, eastern part of the island further sport activities – a swimming stadium, outdoor swimming pool, skate park, volleyball court and climbing wall. Štvanice Island was connected with swimming for a long time, so we wanted to renew this function immediately in two forms. It would entail the building of a year-round covered pool and further the renewal of the summer swimming pool, which used to be in the eastern part. Thanks to the placement of the pools in two barges floating on the river, the outdoor swimming remains in direct contact with the Vltava. At the eastern tip, where the island forms a kind of narrow prow, a climbing wall is projected, which would also serve as an observation tower – the lighthouse of the island. The whole island is conceived as a park and newly connected in the eastern part to Holešovice and Karlín by bridges for pedestrians and cyclists. The central motif of the design is a path which connects all of the existing and newly designed buildings. Car traffic is minimized to the two exits from Hlávkův Bridge and roads leading to the car park. We also propose the renewal of the tram stop at Hlávkův Bridge.