Plzeň wants to rule European culture in 2015

Prague - The city of Plzeň, which is vying for the title of European Capital of Culture for 2015, aims to build a new theater, gallery, library, and space for non-professional artists. The costly investments are planned to be covered from the city budget, regional funds, and state money. The goal of the candidacy is to raise the economic level of the city through cultural development, said Yvona Kreuzmannová, the artistic director of the Plzeň 2015 project, at a press conference in Prague today.
    The city has received nine million crowns from EU funds to prepare its candidacy. Plzeň will compete for the title against Hradec Králové and Ostrava, with applications to be submitted for assessment by the international committee in October. "A successful candidacy means increased interest in cultural tourism to Plzeň throughout Europe, and interest will rise in the Czech Republic as well," Kreuzmannová told journalists. According to her, raising the cultural level of the city motivates more people to settle here.
    However, not all cities are approaching the candidacy so optimistically. For example, Brno's council decided in June that their city would not compete for the prestigious title. The reason was the costs. According to the calculations of the councilors, Brno would need to spend around 100 million crowns as the European Capital of Culture 2015.
    According to Kreuzmannová, the projects mentioned in the candidacy derive from the Integrated Plan for the Development of the City of Plzeň (IPRM), and the city intends to implement them even if it does not win the title.
    "For us, the path to candidacy is important. That is, to realize what vision we have for the city in order to create a metropolis that is pleasant to live in," said Marcela Krejsová, the mayor's deputy for culture, to journalists. According to Krejsová, it is necessary to build the missing infrastructure.
    In preparing the project, the people of Plzeň are drawing inspiration from abroad. "The Glasgow 1990 project raised the living standards and attractiveness of the city. Experts calculated that every pound invested at the time returned to the city more than twice," Kreuzmannová pointed out.
    Project manager Petr Šimon previously mentioned that around a hundred people are working on the project's preparation. The core team consists of ten people. External collaborators from the non-profit cultural sector and foreign experts are involved. Plzeň is being assisted by a Dutch consultant and Slovak Anna Podlesná, whose name is associated with the Prešov 2013 project.
    Plzeň announced its candidacy last September. The title is awarded each year to two selected cities from EU member states; in 2015, it will be a Czech city and a representative from Belgium.