Czech Radio opened the building of the Brno studio after four years of reconstruction

Ernst Wiesner: Czech Bank Union (1925)

Brno – Czech Radio today opened the building of its Brno studio in Beethoven Street after four years of renovations. Workers restored its interwar shine based on the design by architect Miloš Klement from Atelier Tišnovka. They removed years of failed alterations and additions and complemented it with modern interior elements, such as designer lighting. The public broadcaster paid approximately 120 million korunas for the work, said Hana Ondryášová, director of the Brno and Zlin studio, to ČTK.

The building, now a protected monument, was designed by architect Ernst Wiesner for the Czech Bank Union and was built in the mid-1920s. The radio has been based there since 1949. The first phase of the renovation was completed in 2018, when the ground floor with the largest recording studio and the basement with technical facilities were finished. Then, all floors, including other studios and offices, began to be renovated, and a new green roof was also added, where small cultural events for up to 30 people can be held. The roof might not sustain heavier loads. "We restored the first rooftop garden in Brno," Ondryášová said.

According to her, it is good that the renovation is complete because employees had to work for a long time under difficult temporary conditions; for example, the elevator was out of service for a year. "Now the memories will remain only as funny stories," she said during her speech in front of the attending guests. The work is not yet entirely finished, and some employees are waiting for their workplaces to be equipped. Journalists are still not in their facilities.

It is currently uncertain when people from outside will be able to see the renovated building because Czech Radio has not planned anything due to COVID-19. However, if the situation is favorable, a regular open house day will take place. "We also have numerous excursions coming to us. And today at 7:00 PM, there will be a festive concert by BROLN combined with the christening of a new dulcimer, and people can listen to the concert on our broadcast and watch it, including video, on YouTube," Ondryášová said.

The Brno studio is the largest regional radio studio, which began broadcasting just a year after the Prague studio, on September 1, 1924.