Praha 8 wants to renovate the rear wing of the Libeň Castle

source: ŠJů, Wikimedia Commons

Prague - The Prague 8 municipality plans to renovate the rear wing of the Libeň Chateau. The estimated costs are 64 million crowns. In an interview with ČTK today, Mayor Roman Petrus (ČSSD) stated this. The municipality will request funds for the renovation from the city council. After its completion, officials will be based in the rear wing of the chateau. The Rococo chateau previously served, among other things, as a summer residence for Prague mayors; currently, the municipal office occupies it, and there is also a ceremonial hall here.

"This is the oldest part of the chateau. In the past, the facade and roof were repaired in this part, which are in good condition, but the interior has never been renovated," said Petrus.

The municipality has had a project for the repair for several years and has also obtained a building permit. "However, repairs have not taken place in the past. I had the repair costs recalculated, and they amount to the mentioned 64 million. The final sum is high, but it concerns a three-story building, and everything must be done according to the decision of the conservationists," said Petrus.

If the municipality proceeds with the repairs, it would like to move officials into the new spaces. According to Petrus, the front part of the chateau, which currently houses, for example, the mayor, could then be freed up. "There could be representative spaces for the municipality and spaces about the history of Prague 8. However, that is still a vision for the future," he said.

The municipality has requested funds from the city council as part of the planned distribution of the more than billion crown investment reserve of the capital city. If Prague 8 receives money from the city, it will announce a tender to find a construction company. "The actual work, according to the architect who worked on the project, should take 12 to 14 months," said Petrus.

In the past, the municipality had the facade and front of the chateau repaired. The chapel of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary and the adjacent sacristy inside the chateau were also completely renovated.

In addition to the request for money for the chateau's repair, Prague 8 submitted another two requests for funds to the city council - each municipality can send three requests to the city. The first concerns the reconstruction of the Lyčkovo náměstí Primary School, where the dining room and playground, for example, are to be repaired, and the second involves adjustments to the area around the C subway station at Ládví, which is expected to cost about 50 million crowns. Whether the municipality will receive the funds will be decided by the city council commission in the coming weeks.