The Hradec Králové magistrate announced a new tender for the renovation of the museum

Hradec Králové - The City of Hradec Králové has canceled the competition for the selection of a construction company that will ensure the reconstruction of the valuable Art Nouveau building of the East Bohemian Museum. The bids significantly exceeded the estimated price. At the same time, the city announced a new tender for the building's repair, spokesman for the magistrate Petr Vinklář informed ČTK. Although this may delay the reconstruction, it does not currently threaten the expected grant for the reconstruction.

"Two applicants registered for the competition. However, their bids were well above the estimated price," explained Vinklář. According to him, this will certainly mean a delay in the start date of the repairs, which were supposed to begin in January. "We expect a delay of several months," he stated. The estimated cost of the museum's repairs, according to the original tender documentation, is approximately 56 million crowns excluding VAT.

"The detailed measurement and list of works were based on construction documentation and a historical construction survey. However, some items in the bids contained up to ten times the standard prices, in total, both bids were approximately 35 million above the estimated reconstruction value. The repair date will move by several months, but the evaluation committee did not recommend accepting such a high price. Today, the city council canceled the selection process and approved a new competition," said Deputy Mayor Jindřich Vedlich.

The city hall changed the tender documentation for the new selection process to allow more companies to participate in the competition. "Setting a maximum contract value of 70 million crowns excluding VAT should also help with this, particularly for evaluating restoration works, where the discrepancies in bids can be quite significant. The postponement of the reconstruction date does not currently threaten the possibility of drawing on the grant, which we want to use for funding repairs," the deputy added. The grant within the ITI Hradec-Pardubice agglomeration from the Integrated Regional Operational Programme could reach up to 90 percent of eligible costs.

After the repairs in the museum building, new exhibition spaces will be created, part of which will be directly managed by the city. From the terrace near the dome on the roof, there will be a view of part of the city center along the Elbe embankment. The reconstruction of the museum building will be followed by the renovation of the adjacent park behind the building at Kotěrova Street.

The museum building was designed by architect Jan Kotěra between 1909 and 1912 and is one of the most significant buildings in Hradec Králové. In 1995, the museum was declared a national cultural monument.

The East Bohemian Museum is established by the Hradec Králové Region, and the City of Hradec Králové is the investor of the repairs.