The history of the origin of the IGY Centre starts in České Budějovice at the site of the old army granaries and bakeries, popularly referred to as the Storehouse. This is a site that has been used by the army since the time of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which was abandoned shortly after 1990 and a public tender was issued to find a new occupant for the entire complex. Among the several projects submitted by applicants interested in using the site, the most interesting project was the one proposing the development of a multifunctional centre, submitted by the České Budějovice company IGY a.s.

For the next ten years the space of the original Storehouse was provisionally used primarily as a market hall. During this interim period the documentation for the project was put together and the necessary permits were acquired to make it possible to approach a suitable investor at the end of the 1990s.

In 2001 the architects Martin Krupauer and Jiří Střítecký from the architectural firm Atelier 8000 spol. s r.o. finally succeeded in finding a developer in the originally Dutch company ING Real Estate Development International B.V. (hereinafter ING REDI), which has extensive international experience with the construction of similar projects. A joint venture was established between the companies ING REDI and IGY a.s. – the development company ING Real Estate Development České Budějovice, s.r.o. (hereafter just ING RED CB), the finishing touches were put on the project proposal, and everything was progressing rapidly towards the start of construction.

On 22 September 2003 a ceremony was held to celebrate the laying of the foundation stone. This ceremonial event was conceived in the spirit of all the functions that the shopping centre is meant to offer when it opens, incorporating elements of fashion, entertainment, culture and sport. At the time the planned opening date was set to take place approximately one year later, i.e. in the autumn of 2004.