In Liberec, the construction of the entertainment science center iQlandia has begun

Authors of the building: Jiří Palas and Miluše Suchardová - AGP-PJ

Liberec - Construction of the large entertainment science center iQlandia began today in Liberec. The construction of the complex, which will cost over 400 million crowns, has been prepared for three years by the non-profit organization Labyrint Bohemia, which has obtained grants from the Operational Program Research and Development for Innovation for the project. The EU will cover a significant portion of the costs, approximately 20 million will be paid by Labyrint Bohemia and sponsors, said company director Pavel Coufal to journalists. The construction of the center itself will cost approximately 320 million crowns, while nearly 80 million will be spent on its equipment.
    The new center for entertaining knowledge will be built in Liberec opposite the Babylon Center at the site of the dilapidated former Desty complex. The project includes the reconstruction of a building that is over one hundred years old, which, among other things, served as a military hospital during World War II. "This building will remain, even if only the outer walls are left, and it will be carefully reconstructed, and a slightly larger modern building with a large glass tower will be added to it," Coufal described the intention.
    The authors of the project were inspired by similar facilities in Western Europe and overseas, and they want to compare themselves, for example, with a similar science center La Villette in Paris. The Liberec center will have an area of around 10,000 square meters and will be built opposite the site where a similar but smaller center is already operating. "It will be competition for iQpark," admitted Coufal. However, he noted that after the new center opens, it will be expected that iQpark will focus on younger children, while iQlandia will be intended for the older ones. "The new center will be more scientific, the exhibits will be large, grand, and will be in a different style than the current simple ones in iQpark," added the director.
    Visitors can look forward to new exhibitions, with one of the most interesting likely to be the world of nanotechnology. "There will also be an exhibition titled 'Human as a Machine', which will allow visitors to enter through the mouth and explore the human body from the inside," Coufal described one of the exhibits. Another exhibition will be dedicated to planet Earth, where visitors will have the opportunity to walk through a black hole or experience the Big Bang. "There will also be a 3D planetarium, which is missing in northern Bohemia," he added.
    Eurovia has just under two years to build the center. The grand opening is planned for March 28, 2014. According to estimates, around a quarter of a million people could visit the center in the first years, and in subsequent years Coufal expects attendance to grow. Labyrint Bohemia has operated a similar entertainment museum called IQpark in the Babylon Center for five years. "iQpark had just over 150,000 visitors last year, and we expect that with the opening of the new center, attendance will drop to about half," Coufal added. Nevertheless, he believes that both projects should be around 90 percent self-sufficient. The remaining costs will be covered by sponsors.