Jihlava: The dilapidated Dělnický dům should come back to life

JIHLAVA - The deteriorating building of the former Workers' House in Jihlava will begin to be renovated after several years. According to the new owner, the Jihlava architect Jan Konicar, offices, a restaurant, a wine bar, a café, and a community hall will be restored in the building. It will also host a philharmonic with 80 musicians, an art school, and local theaters. This is reported by today's regional newspaper Vysočina.
The operation, according to Konicar, will be financed by the rental of office spaces. He estimates the return on this multimillion investment at more than 20 years. Discussions are underway about constructing a new entrance from the side of the building with an elevator and a glass staircase. However, the owners of the neighboring building disagree with the plan, the newspaper reports.
Konicar purchased the Workers' House from the city in June of this year for a starting price of 5.5 million crowns. He does not yet dare to estimate the total amount of investments.
The Workers' House has been closed for several years. The Jihlava city hall bought it in 2002 from the Tesla company for eight million crowns, but did not find any use for it. Serious considerations for establishing a conservatory or an art-focused university failed. No one applied for the previous auction with a starting price of 7.8 million crowns.
The building was originally a grand hotel opened in 1869 by the Jihlava businessman Franz Gustav Czap. The ballroom, which was the largest in Jihlava, also hosted composer Gustav Mahler. After World War II, the building was renamed the Workers' House.