The construction phase of the future gallery in the mills in Pardubice will take three months longer

Pardubice – The construction phase of the conversion of the automatic mills into gallery spaces in Pardubice will take three months longer and will finish in June next year. The region has also commissioned some changes to the project. This was said to reporters today by the deputy governor Roman Línek (Coalition for Pardubice Region). The East Bohemian Gallery will then open to the public in mid-2023. It will offer up to 1000 m² of exhibition space.

"Anyone who has undertaken a project of such magnitude knows that a lot can change over time. It was necessary to redesign certain elements," Línek said.

The region is having the original mill building reconstructed according to the design of Josef Gočár from the first decade of the 20th century, which is a national cultural monument. Additional extensions that connect to the building were created later. The regional government also intends to repair and use these for cultural and social events in the future.

"We are preparing the building much more for future connections to the northern extension of the silo from the 1960s, which is not part of the project for financial reasons. We have expanded the entrance areas towards the north. The heart of the entrance facility should be a café, which, like the entrance hall, will be two stories," said the designer, architect Petr Všetečka.

According to Všetečka, the architectural design respects the verticals of the building and acknowledges its original function, which is milling flour. "At the same time, we needed the gallery to have properties that the building did not possess. We brought light through the upper roof and created a conceptual large cut, connecting some floors. We are also acknowledging some voids in the silos so that a person can experience the verticality in various forms," Všetečka said.

Primarily in the lower section, the preserved milling technologies will be evident. This includes two flour chutes, one made of laminate and the other of wood.

The total costs will amount to 390 million crowns, with the construction part costing 353 million crowns. The region has an approved subsidy of 127.7 million crowns from the European Union, and it will receive 7.5 million crowns from the state budget. "So far, about 100 million crowns has been spent, the most expensive parts of the construction are yet to come," Línek said.

The city of Pardubice is building central polytechnic workshops and the Gallery of the City of Pardubice in the area of the mills, which will be located on the site of the former flour storage. The Smetana couple is reconstructing the silo and other buildings to house apartments and spaces for cultural events. The Smetanas purchased the entire complex in 2016 for 22 million crowns. Later, they sold part of the complex to municipalities for 36.5 million crowns. All entities are drawing on European subsidies for their projects.