In Ostrava, the reconstruction of the listed Grossmann Villa has been completed

Ostrava - The renovation of the heritage-protected Grossmann Villa has been completed in Ostrava. The more than two-year repair, aimed at restoring the villa to its original form, cost 132 million crowns, and the city will pay over five million crowns for additional furniture. People will be able to visit the villa for the first time next week. The city believes it will become a new landmark and tourist attraction. Mayor Jan Dohnal stated this to reporters today.

"With this, Ostrava gains another landmark, and I believe it will be a significant element of tourism. There is really nothing similar in the wide surroundings. It is a unique building, both in its scale and the renovation that has been carried out," Dohnal said.

The renovation of the century-old building began at the end of 2021; according to original estimates, the renovation of the dilapidated villa was to cost just under 90 million crowns excluding VAT. However, it became apparent during the renovation that the building had been significantly affected by wood rot. "I think the (invested) money is evident at every step, and it has paid off," said the deputy mayor for investments, Břetislav Riger.

František Grossmann had the family villa with a representative office built between 1922 and 1924. The building was approved almost exactly 100 years ago, on March 28, 1924. The villa is surrounded by a garden, which was also revitalized during the current renovation.

"The most complicated part was tracing what the building originally looked like; fortunately, there were plenty of photographs that were a huge help. We also had to choose which periods of the villa we wanted to present. In the end, we decided to restore the villa as much as possible to its appearance in 1924," said project architect Daniel Vaněk. According to him, the intention was successfully fulfilled. "It was accomplished almost 100 percent. The villa is really done as it originally looked, and we managed to preserve its original character," Vaněk stated. During the renovation, experts restored the staircase, which was a dominant feature of the building.

In addition to the builders, restorers significantly contributed to the transformation of the villa. They refurbished windows and doors, locksmith elements, the original hot air heating system, and outdoor historical blinds, as well as restoring stucco decorations, murals, and colored stained glass. Besides vintage photographs, experts also relied on some elements that have been preserved directly in the villa. "I had the opportunity to reconstruct the third building that František Grossmann constructed, and I hope he would have liked it and said that we did it dignifiedly and would approve," Vaněk said.

The city initially attempted to offer the villa to private investors, but this plan did not work out, and it ultimately decided to repair the building itself. The villa is located on Na Zapadlém Street near the regional office and is one of the most valuable in the city. Grossmann lived there with his family for only ten years. Due to the economic crisis and financial problems, he committed suicide in 1933. In the 1960s, the building also served as an educational facility, housing a kindergarten and later a school club.

The villa will be managed by the city company Černá louka. In addition to guided tours, the city plans to use it in the future as representative spaces. Visitors will be able to start tours on April 4. The proceeds from the first tours will help support the Ondrášek mobile hospice. For now, the villa will be open from Friday to Sunday, but from summer it is expected to be open from Tuesday to Sunday. Detailed information can be found on the websites.