The planned central magistrate in Brno could accommodate officials from Orlí or Husova

Brno - In the planned municipal building on Brno's Benešova Street, officials from Orlí, Kounicova, or Husova Street could move in the future. The Office of the City Architect (KAM) of Brno is preparing a competition in which participants will design the first phase of construction for approximately 800 officials. The money for its organization was approved by the council today.

The central building has been talked about for years. The city revived the idea considering the obsolescence of the buildings currently used by the municipality, the repair of which would be expensive. A consolidation in one location would also bring advantages to employees and residents, said Deputy Mayor Karin Podivinská (ANO).

"We conducted a preliminary analysis of how the municipal buildings are performing across the city, and their energy consumption is very high, as are the costs for future repairs. Therefore, we returned to the idea of a central office where citizens would find all counters in one place, with convenient parking and close to the train and bus station. This is an advantage for commuting officials as well," the deputy said. She added that the New Town Hall, as a historic building, would continue to serve the political representation. Officials would leave other buildings that the city could sell and theoretically finance the construction of the new building. Podivinská did not want to estimate the cost of the new building yet.

Councilors approved a contribution of 300,000 crowns for this year. The total costs of the competition are expected to be 8.6 million crowns. Its purpose is primarily to find and evaluate the optimal solution for the architectural design and optimal spatial arrangement of the first phase of the new building, which will allow the commission of subsequent project work. The results should be known next year.

"The design and construction of the new office will be split into two phases. The first will cover the inevitable need and concerns 800 officials. We are currently preparing a competition for that. The second is not yet planned, as it will depend on the need for official positions. We are talking in the horizon of several years, so it cannot be said what it will be. The idea is that first one building will be created, to which an extension might be possible," said KAM director Jan Tesárek. He added that in preparing the competition, they are also using materials from the past when Brno had planned the new office.