Jihlava - It is said that President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk contributed 50,000 crowns to the house built in Jihlava for legionnaires in the 1920s. The residents of the complex at the corner of today's Fritzova and Legionářů streets had extensive facilities. In addition to apartments and offices, there were restaurants and a café, shops, a cinema hall for film screenings, stables for horses, garages, and a bowling alley in the garden. This was stated by architectural theorist Michaela Pacherová to the participants of today’s tour on the occasion of Architecture Day.
"To ensure that the residents of that complex did not have to go unnecessarily into the city, for the housing to be comfortable," said Pacherová regarding the house's amenities. The decision to build the Legiodum was made in 1923 by the Czechoslovak Legionary Association, which had 1,500 members in the Jihlava area. This addressed the insufficient spaces for its activities and the problems arising from the post-war housing crisis.
It was a construction with a budget of 2.6 million crowns. President Masaryk assessed it as a beneficial initiative in both economic and social terms, Pacherová stated. The house was designed by architect Jaroslav Dufka in an architectural style artificially created after the war, known as rondokubism or Czech national style. The same style was used for the Prague Legiobanka and the crematorium in Pardubice.
The Jihlava Legiodum, covering almost 7,000 square meters, grew gradually. "The entire construction was completed in June 1926," said Pacherová. The complex also included stables for horses with a granary, a refrigerator, in which ice was probably stored for the local restaurant, and later a simple gas station. "There were shops selling milk and groceries, and at one time, a pharmacy," Pacherová noted.
Over the years, several renovations have taken place in the area, and it still serves as an apartment building. The restaurant remains in operation. The spacious cinema, which has been closed for years, now houses a furniture store.
The events connected with Architecture Day in Jihlava were organized by the UNArchitekti studio. About 200 people attended the Legiodum tour. Other interesting buildings, usually inaccessible, could be visited in the Vysočina region over the weekend in Třebíč, Krucemburk, or Petrkov.
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