Authorities lose patience with Wenceslas Sq. kiosk owners

The Prague authorities are suing owners who have failed to remove food stands on the city’s Wenceslas Square. Eight out of 18 ordered off the square after the city cancelled contracts remain. The eighth, remarkably, continues to sell pizza despite the closure order and the imposition of fines.

Photo: Kristýna Maková

Eighteen of 23 kiosks selling fast food, newspapers and flowers on Wenceslas Square were to have disappeared by the beginning of January – but eight remain on the square even now. Prague ordered their removal as part of renovation plans to rejuvenate the site for both locals and tourists, with aim of discouraging crime. But the kiosks remain: the sizzle is gone but not fading ads for sausages and cola. In response, the authorities have not delayed and issued not only fines but have sued the offenders for their failure to comply. Tereza Králová is the spokeswoman for Prague City Hall:

“Right now owners are being charged 47 crowns per square metre per day. Plus they are being fined 10,000 crowns every day for the failure to remove the kiosks. The operators, however, filed a request for the fines to be dropped, so they have not yet come into effect.”

Not all were in favour of the stands being closed in the first place, arguing that klobasa sausages were as much a part of Wenceslas Square as the patron saint himself. Some told Czech Radio that the bratwurst, traditionally served with a lick of mustard or ketchup on cardboard trays, should have been allowed to stay, albeit with fewer outlets. Here’s what some passers-by had to say:

“I think they should have left a few.”

“I think it is something of a tradition.”

Photo: archive of Radio Prague

Even the mayor of Prague 1, Oldřich Lomecký, said under no circumstances should bratwurst disappear completely, one reason perhaps two sites on Wenceslas Square have retained permits for the time being and remain open. Even once 22 new designer kiosks are introduced on the famous throughway, some are still likely to sell sausages, only under stricter circumstances than previously. City councillor Aleksandra Udžinija explains why the old stands couldn’t stay.

“Some were open 24 hours a day which had an influence on criminality. It might seem like we are against business but the opposite was the case: businesses across from the stands were at a marked disadvantage.”

Many will no doubt be looking forward to improvement of Wenceslas Square but while empty stands continue to line the throughway, those days still seem far away.