Brno-north is set to receive two million for the reconstruction of Arnold's villa

Brno - The Brno city council proposed to provide the city district of Brno-North with two million korunas for the preparation of project documentation for the reconstruction of the Arnold Villa. The documentation will serve as the basis for a grant application from the Norwegian funds. An optimistic timeline for starting the reconstruction, in case of a successful application, is at the turn of 2019 and 2020, said deputy mayor Petr Hladík (KDU-ČSL) at a press conference today.

The Arnold Villa is a Art Nouveau building from 1862, which served as a kindergarten until five years ago. The children had to leave due to the poor building condition and unsatisfactory hygiene standards. Its restoration and revitalization are being pursued by the association Cultural Center of Josef Arnold.

"The project documentation could be completed in three quarters of a year, and during this time we want to discuss with the city district, experts, and the association about what to fill the future cultural center with," said Hladík. The documentation is expected to outline the costs of the reconstruction, after which a more detailed documentation for the building permit should be created. "Given the administrative process, I assume that construction could begin at the earliest by the end of 2019," said Hladík.

The villa is located in the oldest villa development in Brno in Černá Pole near Lužánky Park and is on the list of the most endangered monuments in the Czech Republic. The Arnold couple owned it for 21 years before selling it, with various owners alternating in the property. The association, which was established last year, initially sought to revive the garden. This year, on September 30, the villa was also exceptionally opened to the public, allowing people to walk through the garden and tour the interiors with a guide.

If the villa is successfully repaired, it will be the fifth reconstructed building from the second half of the 19th century and the first third of the 20th century. People can already see architecturally valuable villas in Brno, such as Tugendhat, Löw-Beer, Stiassni, and Jurkovič villas.