Lanškroun plans a small IQ park, needs 100 million crowns

Lanškroun (Orlickoústecko) - The town of Lanškroun in Orlickoústecko wants to build an experimentarium, a building with classrooms for physics and chemistry experiments. The town hall aims to support children's interest in technical fields. The construction, costing 100 million crowns, will only be funded by grants; it will not be clear until next year whether the European Union will support such projects. This was stated by mayor Stanislava Švarcová (ODS).
    "It would be a smaller version of an IQ park, with interactive classrooms for second-level students and pupils. The number of students at our vocational school and apprenticeship has been steadily declining," said the mayor.
    The town hall initially wanted to build a community center for 50 million crowns. However, they could not secure funding for it. According to the mayor, community life in the town is functioning well even without new facilities. "The experimentarium project is definitely not buried. Grants are still being prepared; it is not entirely clear in what form and how many there will be," said the mayor.
    Besides the community center, the town hall has had to implement two other projects in a more modest form in recent years. They wanted to build a generous recreational area around the Dlouhý pond for 100 million crowns. They could not secure grants, so they are proceeding with small steps. They renovated the mini-golf, built wooden walkways, a footbridge, and toilets.
    In the place of the former brewery, there was to be a square with shops. Private entrepreneurs have filled the spaces up to 40 percent so far. Beer was brewed in Lanškroun continuously from 1701 to 1999. The town purchased the abandoned factory in 2000 for 5.5 million crowns. An urban study was created in 2003.
    "It will take several years to completely revitalize the square. Unfortunately, the time is not right for larger investments. The experimentarium should be built on the site of the former brewery cellars," stated the mayor.
    The town has divided the individual properties and offered them to private investors. In one part, they built an apartment building. A sports center, an administrative building with a lighting store, a paint shop, a children's goods store, and a law office are currently operating there.
    "Unfortunately, there are several properties that have not been revitalized. One building is likely being left to fall by a speculator," said city architect Přemysl Kokeš to ČTK.