PRESS RELEASE: The City sets guidelines for the provision of grants for the restoration of monuments for 2005 (2006)

“It regards expanding the criteria for handing out financial grants to a wider group of buildings. In the next year it will be possible to ask for financial grants for buildings, which have just been proposed   as cultural monuments, and are located in the area of the City of Prague. We will also newly introduce a category for the exact amount of requested grant. This category will lead the grant applicant to a more thorough analysis of the cost and at the same time help provide an overview for the entire grant policy,” informed the deputy mayor of Prague Jan Bürgermeister, under whose competence falls the preservation of monuments for the City. It is newly available to also request a two-year grant: “This financial grant will be provided in the case of extensive reconstruction of monuments, which will be carried out and calculated in two phases, separately for each year – that is 2005 and 2006,” – the deputy Bürgermeister explaining another important change. The introduction of a two-year grant according to him means an easier grant agenda for difficult and extensive work.

In the guidelines for providing grants, which last year were prepared by Prague City Council – Culture, Monument Care and Tourism Department, it was also introduced that the application for financial grants cannot be given by the municipalities or the City districts, nor by organisations established by municipalities or City districts. For the provision of grants, which are discretionary, only owners, who do not have debts with the city, can request these. Grants can be provided retroactively on already completed restoration and maintenance work that began after 1 July 2004 and was completed by 15 November 2005.

Copies of the applications are available in the information centre of Prague City Council, Mariánské náměstí 2, Prague 1, in the registry of the Culture, Monument Care and Tourism Department of Prague City Council, Staroměstské náměstí 4, Prague 1 and on the website www.praha-město.cz. Completed grant applications will be accepted until 31 December 2004 and later will be judged in two rounds.