<div>Part of the Bať Institute will begin serving people in mid-December</div>

Zlín - Complications discovered during construction have postponed the opening of part 14/15 of the Baťa Institute, which is being created in the center of Zlín through the complete reconstruction of two former factory buildings, from the originally anticipated end of September to mid-December. The deputy of the governor and chairman of the project's steering committee, Libor Lukáš (ODS), told journalists today. The premises will host the Regional Gallery of Fine Arts, the Museum of Southeast Moravia, and the František Bartoš Regional Library.
Builders found that the reinforced concrete reinforcements stated in the project did not correspond to reality. "The Baťa craftsmanship was definitely not applied in the late 1940s after nationalization as it was before the war. So, I, as a construction engineer by profession, halted the hectic pace of construction to maintain quality. The structural engineers proposed measures so that we could replace inadequate concretes and lower rebar content in individual columns with certain interventions, and for this reason, we have postponed the deadline by about two and a half months toward the end of the year," Lukáš stated.
According to him, however, these measures do not jeopardize the completion date of the entire project, which is supposed to be finished by mid-next year. "As of today, approximately 300 million crowns have been spent, and by the end of July, it was about 250 million crowns. At this moment, construction has fully kicked off in all respects. We are in the final phase of installing air conditioning systems, electrical installations, water supply, and heating systems, and similar,” added the governor's deputy.
By mid-December, the renovation of Building 14 should be completed, where the gallery and museum will move. The new square between the two buildings will also be finished. Building 15 is expected to be completed by April 2013, after which it will become the seat of the regional library. The region also announced a slogan that the new cultural center will promote. Out of 186 proposals submitted to the competition, the proposal by twenty-five-year-old student Aneta Zárubová from New York University in Prague, "Open Your Eyes!", was selected.
The entire project will cost 900 million crowns. In addition to serving as the headquarters of significant cultural institutions currently operating in inadequate facilities, it will revitalize another part of the extensive factory complex. The region has obtained a subsidy of 500 million crowns from European Union funds for the project. After completion, 14/15 Baťa Institute will belong to the most modern cultural centers in Central Europe. At the same time, it will continue the tradition of Baťa's educational institutions.
The transformation of the two factory complex buildings follows the reconstruction of Building 21, the Baťa skyscraper. The Zlín regional government renovated it in 2004. The reconstruction of the current headquarters of the regional office cost almost 630 million crowns. According to architect Petr Všetečka, the original character of the building has been preserved during the renovation, which is also one of the goals of the repairs of the two factory buildings designed by architect Jiří Voženílek, from which 14/15 Baťa Institute is being created.