In Říčany, a leisure center with a swimming pool will be opened

Říčany - In Říčany near Prague, the leisure center Na Fialce has been completed for 130 million crowns. It includes a 25-meter swimming pool, a sports hall, and a theater hall where films will be screened and plays performed. The grand opening is planned for Saturday, said the center's director Lukáš Basík to ČTK. The investor is Openplace, whose managing director is Ivan Drbohlav, the majority owner of the company Mountfield.
    The construction of the complex, located on a pedestrian route between the train station and the square, began last April and was expected to take a year. "The completion of the building has slightly shifted from the spring term, approximately by four months," Basík stated.
    According to him, the center will be open seven days a week and 350 days a year. In addition to the pool, it will offer saunas, a multifunctional sports hall for football, floorball, badminton, basketball, volleyball, and other sports, and a multipurpose cultural hall where films will be screened, lectures held, or plays performed. "The program will focus primarily on children and youth, offering up to 150 interest groups weekly. You can also get a massage here, visit a physiotherapist, or a nutrition advisor," Basík added.
    Openplace is a family business; Drbohlav runs it together with his wife, daughter, and son-in-law. According to his earlier statements, it is a non-returnable investment; the center is expected to generate income only to cover its operating costs. According to him, Říčany did not have the funds for a similar project. If the center were developed as a business project, Drbohlav believes it would not be possible to keep the admission fees low.
    The complex was partially built on land previously blocked by church restitution. Therefore, the city transferred the parcel to the church, which sold it to the investor, using the proceeds to repair the rectory in the square. The preparation of the project took two years and was complicated by insufficient capacity in the sewage system. However, this issue has been resolved before the opening of the center.