The reconstruction of the Imperial Baths has six months of work ahead

Karlovy Vary - The reconstruction of the Imperial Spa in Karlovy Vary is heading into the final six months of work. The repair of the building is nearing completion, and now the construction of the concert hall and the preparation of a new spa exhibition will come next. The total costs are expected to reach approximately 1.4 billion crowns. The concert hall, which will be built in the atrium of the Imperial Spa, will be a unique solution in many respects, both architecturally and acoustically, as stated at today's presentation of the reconstruction status at the Karlovy Vary Regional Office.

According to architect Petr Hájek, who is the author of the design for the hall's construction in the Imperial Spa, the goal was to create not only a concert hall but also a space for various purposes, from concerts to film screenings to balls or other social gatherings. Therefore, the hall is highly variable, with the seating able to retract, the stage capable of changing its height and layout, and the hall having various acoustic settings according to the needs of different types of events.

An independent chapter is the technology of the construction. The hall will be located in the middle of the historical building but will not touch it or require tearing down any part of the historical building for the construction to be incorporated. The largest components will be lowered into the atrium of the Imperial Spa through an opening roof.

"This was probably the most complicated logistical task. You can imagine it like a ship being assembled with tweezers in a bottle. You have to manufacture each component first and build it as a prototype somewhere in a hall to ensure that nothing is missing. Then it needs to be numbered and disassembled and reassembled in the atrium of the building. The rule is that the individual components are no larger than the largest opening leading into that atrium,” described Hájek.

According to Martin Vondráček, who was responsible for the acoustic properties of the constructed hall, it is a solution that is possibly unique worldwide. The back wall of the hall, which can disappear, serves an acoustic function. Built-in triangles with sides of different acoustic properties can then adapt the space to various sound requirements. Moreover, there will be classic audiovisual technology, cleverly hidden so as not to disrupt the impression of the historical space.

According to regional representative Pavel Čekan (Local), approximately 700 million crowns have been invested so far. The construction itself will cost about 1.127 billion, the hall's construction will be around 157 million crowns, the planned exhibition around 50 million crowns, and the interior furnishings about 40 million crowns. The opening of the renovated Imperial Spa is expected in June 2023, preceded by several months of trial operations to test all parts of the reconstructed building.