The region will support the reconstruction of the monastery in Nová Paka with 36 million CZK

Hradec Králové - The Královéhradecký region will support the reconstruction of the monastery in Nová Paka in the Jičín region with a grant of 36 million crowns for a social services facility. The total value of the project, which is being prepared by the Nová Paka non-profit organization Life Without Barriers, is about 100 million crowns. The city of Nová Paka will guarantee the reconstruction and will also be the recipient of the grant from the region. The regional grant, without which the project could not proceed, was approved today by the regional councilors.

In the former Pauline monastery, there was previously a hospital belonging to the Královéhradecký region. After its closure in 2004, the region sold the property in 2006 to the non-profit organization Life Without Barriers. The organization subsequently began to provide social services to people with disabilities and seniors at the site. It also repaired part of the buildings on the premises.

Life Without Barriers has obtained two grants from European funds totaling 43 million crowns for the renovation of the former hospital's main building. However, according to the mayor of Nová Paka, Josef Cogan, it no longer had the strength to co-finance the hundred million investment. Life Without Barriers had previously requested a grant from the region but was unsuccessful because it owed the region six million crowns as a payment for the purchase of the property 13 years ago.

The city of Nová Paka subsequently intervened, providing Life Without Barriers with a loan to pay off the debt to the region. The city has also successfully applied to the region for funding, which will be received in installments from 2019 to 2021, always 12 million crowns per year, in the form of a grant for the purchase of the former monastery building.

From its own resources, the city is expected to invest 25 to 30 million crowns into the project. According to Mayor Cogan, Nová Paka will need to borrow money for the project. The construction itself is expected to last about 2.5 years. "It will be a burden for us, but we are prepared to bear that burden,” said Cogan. The regional councilor for property, Václav Řehoř, warned that if the project did not materialize, Nová Paka would have to return the grant to the region.

In the former hospital building, a community center, spaces for expert counseling, an expanded day care center for people with Alzheimer's disease, and lending services for compensatory aids are to be established. The reconstruction and new use of the heritage-protected 17th-century monastery will, according to Cogan, also contribute to the preservation of the building, which is referred to as Nová Paka's Hradčany due to its appearance.