The Czech Embassy in Berlin is relocating, facing several years of reconstruction.

Berlin - The Czech Embassy in Germany is temporarily moving to a new address in Berlin; the brutalist building designed by the couple Věra and Vladimír Machonin is set to undergo a demanding reconstruction. This iconic building, which Berliners often refer to as Raumschiff Enterprise after the starship Enterprise from the sci-fi world of Star Trek, will not only regain its shine but also ensure more energy-efficient operation. The long-delayed renovation will cost hundreds of millions of crowns and will last several years.

The building, completed in 1978, is now largely unused and its operation is extremely energy-intensive. "The poor condition of the current technical equipment could be expressed in the words of the current users as follows - hot in summer, cold in winter, it is no longer livable or workable here," stated Marie Nováková, deputy director of the property management department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, last November. She participated in a reception at the embassy where the representation said goodbye to the building.

The farewell took place in advance because the embassy is still located at Wilhelmstrasse 44. However, from July, it has rented alternative offices for five years in the building at Hausvogteiplatz 10, where it intends to offer services to Czech citizens starting in September. The move, which involves ensuring the safe operation of the embassy, is now reaching its climax. The embassy also warns on its website that due to the relocation, the consular section will be closed for two weeks starting August 19.

Despite the new location, the embassy will remain symbolically connected to the original building. The link is Mohrenstrasse (Mouřenínova), which begins and ends at the corner of Wilhelmstrasse at the current location of the representation and at Hausvogteiplatz directly at the house where the embassy will have its temporary address.

The move also means that the embassy will temporarily lose its unique representative spaces, including social halls and a cinema. The outgoing ambassador Tomáš Kafka, who will leave the Berlin post at the end of August, sees it as an opportunity. The role of the embassy, in fact, can expand from being a cultural magnet that attracts attention to one place, to the whole metropolis. The embassy already tested this last year when it celebrated the anniversary of the establishment of the independent Czechoslovak state in 1918 at the Bavarian representation in Berlin.

"It had a certain symbolic weight,” Kafka said in an interview with ČTK. "And I think it was a strong emotional experience for both sides and a sign of mutual respect. I can imagine that the embassy and my successor might pursue this path," he noted.

When asked if the Czech representation would become a sort of cultural business traveler in Berlin, Kafka replied that he sees the embassy as a flexible partner. "We will now bring culture to the people rather than have them come to us," he said.

The fate of the building, designed by the Machonin couple in 1972, was uncertain for a long time. Proposals were made to demolish, sell, or reconstruct it. The Czech government ultimately decided in 2017 to repair it, which according to initial plans was supposed to be completed by 2023. However, the preparation for the reconstruction was plagued by delays, which repeatedly led to postponements. Only now has the embassy received a building permit, which according to Kafka was not easy to obtain. The ambassador noted that it is now necessary to prepare an implementation project and announce a competition for who will carry out the reconstruction.

"It's not like we could start tomorrow. However, an important stage has now been completed," Kafka said. Once the renovation is truly completed, which could still take several years, the embassy wants to turn the building into a monument. "At the end of the reconstruction, we would like to symbolically register the building as a protected monument together with our German partners," he said.

The reconstruction, according to the plans of the Czech government, will start no earlier than spring 2025. The total costs, including the necessary twenty percent reserve, were calculated by a government resolution in 2017 at 726.7 million crowns. What the actual amount will be is still unclear.

The goal is to preserve the appearance and spirit of the embassy, modernize the building both energetically and technologically, and also eliminate possible health hazards in the form of asbestos. Some embassy staff had linked their health issues to asbestos a few years ago, but according to the Černín Palace, the levels were within the norm.

From an external perspective, the appearance of the building will essentially remain unchanged, but the façade will be renewed and all windows and glass fittings will be replaced with energy-efficient ones. All valuable parts of the interior, especially the representative halls, will be preserved. In the empty spaces of the embassy, apartments will be created for the needs of the embassy. New technical facilities will meet modern energy standards.