Ústí nad Orlicí is preparing to build a gallery on the site of the former textile factory Perla

Ústí nad Orlicí – Ústí nad Orlicí continues to prepare the construction of a gallery in the area of the former textile factory Perla. The initial proposal from the architectural competition will be developed into project documentation this year, and the city hall aims to obtain a building permit. Although the gallery is not an investment priority, the city needs to have everything prepared for a potential grant application, said Mayor Petr Hájek (Oušťáci association) today to ČTK.

"I see this as a run for the next three to five years. Without a project and building permit, we will not be at the so-called starting line. And we have this year for that," said Hájek. The city has four million crowns budgeted for project work this year.

In the competition for the design of the Gallery Perlou, the architectural studio Chybik + Kristof Associated Architects from Brno won. According to them, the city wants to transform part of the administrative building, machinery room, and transformer station of the former textile factory Perla, with the proposal converting them into a modern art gallery. An educational space and a textile cabinet will also be created in the building, highlighting the textile history of the city. The municipal organization Klubcentrum will also find new facilities there, and a café should be located on the ground floor. A preserved factory chimney will dominate the area around the gallery.

The gallery must wait until the city has enough money. According to the mayor, Ústí nad Orlicí primarily needs to build an extension to the retirement home, estimating the costs at 160 million crowns. The city hall also wants to build a parking house in the area of the former textile factory Perla 01, and is working on a project for a tennis hall, for which it aims to obtain a grant from the National Sports Agency.