The Skloexport building in Liberec is going back up for auction, the state has reduced the price to 57 million CZK.

Liberec - The long-unused Skloexport building in Liberec is going back to electronic auction. The third round will take place from January 31 to February 1. The starting price has been reduced by the Office for Representation of the State in Property Matters (ÚZSVM) by another ten million to 57.01 million crowns. The mandatory deposit that interested parties must submit has also decreased, falling to 5.7 million crowns. Potential buyers must submit it by Monday, January 30, at midnight. This was stated today by the office spokesperson Michaela Tesařová.

The seven-story Skloexport building was constructed according to the project of architect František Vahala at the corner of Zittau and May 1 streets between 1928 and 1930 for the tax and customs administration. The renowned exporter of Czech glass acquired it during the communist regime, and the company went bankrupt in the second half of the 1990s. The state took over the building in 2001, and the last tenants left it eight years later. Since 2008, the state has been unsuccessfully attempting to sell the complex covering an area of 9,357 square meters. According to estimates, it needs reconstruction costing more than half a billion crowns.

The building was owned by the General Financial Directorate for years. It was first offered in August 2008, when a court expert determined the minimum price to be 84.6 million crowns, but no interested party was found. The complex could not be sold in subsequent years either, as the price gradually decreased to 45 million crowns. In May 2020, the building was taken over by ÚZSVM. According to ÚZSVM spokesperson Michaela Tesařová, no state institution has expressed interest in the building, which is why the office is looking for a new owner through a transparent electronic auction.

In the past, the city of Liberec expressed interest in the complex. It wanted to acquire the property free of charge, but could not reach an agreement with the state, and the city council rejected buying it for 67 million crowns in January. The Liberec Region wanted to convert the building in the spring to accommodate up to 500 Ukrainian refugees, but also failed. So far, neither the city nor the region has participated in the auctions. The office first auctioned the building on November 15 and 16 with a starting price of over 79 million crowns. One interested party submitted the deposit but did not place a bid, and the building was not sold. The second round of the auction on December 20 and 21 had a similar outcome, even though the price was reduced to 67 million crowns.

Building viewings for interested parties before the third round are scheduled for Monday, January 16 at 10:00 AM and Thursday, January 19 at 2:00 PM, according to Tesařová.