The Lucerna Palace in Prague will have a new facade

Prague - The Lucerna Palace will have a new facade on Vodičkova Street. Prague councillors today approved a grant of five million crowns, which was requested by the building's owner, Dagmar Havlová, the wife of Ivan Havel. The decision still needs to be approved by the city council. Lucerna has been a national cultural monument since 2017.

During the facade reconstruction, it is necessary to renovate the load-bearing structures of the balconies and terraces, completely restore the facades including sheet metal and artistic craftsmanship elements. In further works, the owner plans to reconstruct the winter gardens located behind the balconies in the outer sections of the facade, including refurbishing and adding glass walls in the interior and renovating the windows. Overall, the estimated costs are 23 million crowns.

Lucerna, located between Vodičkova and Štěpánská streets, was built by Václav Havel, the grandfather of later president Václav Havel and his brother Ivan. Soon after its inception, it became a center of cultural and social life in Prague. After 1948, it was nationalized, and in 1992 the palace was returned to brothers Václav and Ivan Havlovi through restitution. This was followed by disputes and complications, after which the courts decided that the entire building belongs to Ivan Havel's wife, Dagmar Havlová, who intends to reconstruct and revitalize the palace.