Kopřivnice is selling the historic Bönisch villa

Kopřivnice (Novojičínsko) - The historic Bönisch villa in Kopřivnice in the Novojičín area, which has served as a puppet theater in recent decades, is changing ownership. The city has decided to sell the villa because it did not have enough funds for its complete renovation, and the only way to save the architecturally valuable building was its sale. This was stated by the city hall spokesperson Lucie Petříčková.
    "After about a year of repeatedly publicizing the intention to sell the villa, the city received an offer from a single interested party, namely a company from Kopřivnice that supplies yarn for textile production. They will pay 3.4 million Czech crowns for the historic property and will completely renovate it," Petříčková said.
    In place of the puppet theater, which has been operating in the cultural center since last year because it was no longer technically feasible to use the villa, there will be offices, accommodation spaces, and a café. "Within two years, repairs to the roofs, replacement of the roof covering, insulation of the building, connection to the municipal sewage system, replacement of windows and doors, and renovation of the façade will be carried out. All of this with an emphasis on preserving the original appearance as much as possible, including most of the architectural elements," said Miloš Sopuch from the city's property department.
    The house was built by doctor Ignác Bönisch between 1888 and 1889 and is the work of the prominent builder Heinrich Czeike. "It was the very first residential building with urban characteristics," Petříčková noted.
    She reminded that in 1945 the property came under national administration and was confiscated a year later. After that, several tenants lived in the villa, there was even a branch of the Příbor music school, and subsequently, it was used by the puppet theater.
    In 1992, the building was transferred to the city's ownership, which repaired the roof seven years later. Although the city attempted several times to obtain a grant for a general reconstruction of the historic building, it was unsuccessful. Thus, it decided to sell the oldest villa in Kopřivnice.