Brewery terraces, an orchard, a dynamic scenery in the middle of the city, a view of the chateau, immediate vincinity of the town square and a brewery with a huge social potential, the Golden Path, Křesanovský creek, a forgotten romance. Low walls, arranged in an ascending order, with every level bringing a slightly different experience are the qualities of the place, directing our meditation.
The solution works with the space in two ways. In the lower part (terraces number zero and number one), we imprint a more social character in the space. We create a flat ground with a place to sit and with facilities, partly opening and making accessible the Křesanovský creek bed, with the help of a new weir, making it possible to touch the water or splash your feet in it.
In the higher, southern part we then sensitively dust off the dim genius loci, renovate the dry-constructed walls and stairways, add to the creation of an intimate environment of orchards and green areas. We open the entrance to the rear courtyard of the brewery, connect every level to the Golden Path, design a simple playground on one of the higher levels, or rather a play-enabling feature, blending into the surroundings. We consider the horizontals of the retaining walls to be a crucial image of the place and we propose no new incursions into them with the exception of those already present.

The gazebo in Úsilný, which serves as a community center, was created on the basis of the Architectural Concept of the municipality, which we developed in 2013. The architectural concept described the plaza Pod kaštany as a place where two new municipal buildings – the Gazebo and the Community House – are to be built in the future to support the character of the place where the St. Wenceslas pilgrimage is still held.

The gazebo is a simple wooden structure that opens with a large veranda towards the center of the municipality, and closes the Pod kaštany plaza towards the fields, thus completing the central space of the municipality.

The building consists of a common room, toilets and a veranda. The common room is used by local neighbors for various occasions – from council meetings to communal baking and cooking at festivities, and in the case of larger social events on the plaza it can be used as a bar and for serving drinks and food. Toilets accessible from the veranda provide a stable background for large social events that are held on the plaza Pod Kaštany. The veranda is used for festivities to sit at large tables. The wider eastern part can be turned into a stage facing the plaza as well as into a covered outdoor room. In the future, it is planned to place a large bread oven on the veranda.

It is a solid wooden frame made of glued profiles with CNC joints. The walls are made as a timber frame structure. The outer and large part of the inner cladding is made of painted decks, the porch floor is made of larch planks, the inner floors are cast.

The area is situated along the Polečnice River and the exit from Český Krumlov towards Horní Planá (Lipno). The topographically rugged landscape is defined in the southern and northern parts by steep slopes rising from the floodplain. The heterogeneous area consists of several localities with different character. In the eastern part, in the meander of the river, the area gives the impression of a transitional suburban brownfield of an industrial-mixed character. Nové Dobrkovice itself has the character of a small village wedged into the steep southern slope between the river and the railway. An important cycle route runs through the valley.

The proposal eliminates the most pressing problems, which are mainly traffic, fragmentation, lack of connectivity and degraded public space. It introduces new places of residence into the area, which mainly serve the inhabitants of Český Krumlov and part of Nové Dobrkovice. It creates a dignified gateway to the town, in keeping with its importance. Examples of details representing individual sites are used to describe the design of the public spaces.

The proposed athletes’ facilities consist of two buildings – sports and technical facilities. Both facilities are located on the part of the plot between the entrance to the playing field from the pond and the field to the east. The shape of the plot also implies the triangular layout of the entire facility – it follows the edge of the football pitch, the pond and the newly planned field. The shape of the house, with its high gable and rafter of columns, is linked to the existing building by the tennis courts and so encloses the whole sports area. The deep gallery will serve as a covered terrace during football matches, which will comfortably accommodate a large table for fans and also allow access to individual rooms. A large sign of SK Úsilné on the façade above the gallery makes it clear to the visiting players on which field they are playing today. The wooden façade, which is based on the club’s colours, is just as distinctive.

In 2020, Bedřiška is no longer the site of arson attacks and garbage piles, as it was 10 years ago. Today, Bedřiška has the problem of population decline, poor technical condition of houses, their complex administration and maintenance, and increasingly uncertainty about future development. The key questions are: Whether or how to renew the housing stock at all? Is it possible to repair existing houses, or is it necessary to demolish them and build new ones? Is the existing spatial arrangement of Bedřiška suitable? Should Bedřiška grow in size? How much? Where? And what about the people, the neighbors who live here? How to keep them here?

The city of Ostrava perceives the potential of the locality and the community, but it is aware of the problems associated with them at the same time. Therefore, it commissioned the elaboration of this study, which deals with the issue of revitalization of Bedřiška in a broad context and comprehensively from the design of buildings and public spaces to the description of the possibilities of involving the local community in its restoration.

This study, which was discussed with local government representatives, city unions, but also representatives of the citizens, is the first step, which must be followed by further steps for successful implementation.

The present design is not one of the “simple” solutions. This is not a solution that could be implemented next year. This is a concept that will be implemented gradually, it will require the will to finish it and the will to agree. It will place great demands on coordination.

In essence, however, the design is concise. Stability and development of the Bedřiška locality can be achieved by opening it and connecting it with its surroundings, involving more entities in its restoration, increasing the number of inhabitants and providing the local community with the opportunity to gain responsibility for the future development of Bedřiška. The proposed strengthens the self-governing role of the population and reduced the demands on the city administration. A model that can approach each house and its occupants individually and in a longer term.