Vojtěch Kostka, Head of the U Opavice coop unit, July 24, 2018
“Cooperative democracy is about communicating and negotiating.”
Vojtěch Kostka, who worked all his life (until retirement) as a planner at Ostroj, moved to the U Opavice 4 apartment block with his wife Irena in 1965, and they raised a son and daughter here. Born and raised in a village, he has been actively engaged in the activities of the U Opavice coop since the very beginning as it has always been important to him to create a pleasant living here. He has been the U Opavice unit head since 1995, when he took the position over from Mr. Mainuš. And he also previously headed the coop unit in the 1970s. Most recently, Mr. Kostka has guided the U Opavice coop through the reconstruction of the boiler room, replacement of the apartment blocks’ cores and lifts, and the thermal insulation and total revitalization of the buildings. As the head of the coop unit, Mr. Kostka schedules and conducts membership meetings twice a year, for which he diligently prepares. The director position is time and energy consuming, and Mr. Kostka is eager to hand it over to somebody younger, but so far there are no interested candidates. In the interview Mr. Kostka emphasizes that the basis of the cooperative democracy is communication and negotiation, and he discusses the advantages of the housing cooperative model. He speaks especially fondly of the Children’s Days organized by the coop in the 1970s and early 1980s. He is an enthusiastic supporter of young families with children and tries to meet their needs. And he also initiated the monthly informal get-togethers of the locals at the U tří jabloní pub.
