Lesy ČR continue with the project of a new headquarters for 2 billion, this year they want to have the permit

Hradec Králové – The state enterprise Forests of the Czech Republic (LČR) will continue with the project of building a new headquarters in Hradec Králové for nearly two billion crowns even under new leadership. The construction has been supported by Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) and Agriculture Minister Martin Šebestyán (for SPD), who visited the enterprise on Wednesday. This year, LČR hopes to obtain a building permit for the construction. Eva Jouklová, the spokesperson for the company, told ČTK today. The enterprise also considered renovating the existing headquarters. LČR manages nearly half of the forests in the Czech Republic and made a profit of 5.3 billion crowns last year.

The construction of the new building next to the existing inadequate headquarters of LČR began preparations in 2015 under General Director Daniel Szórád. At that time, the company estimated the price at half a billion crowns excluding tax. However, three years later, LČR halted everything due to worsened management caused by the bark beetle crisis. The enterprise had also obtained a building permit for the construction, which later expired.

LČR returned to the project, whose floor plan is meant to resemble a tree with five branches, in 2023 under Director Dalibor Šafařík. The architects then fundamentally changed the project by replacing the original supporting concrete structures with wood. The building is expected to be the largest wooden administrative building in the Czech Republic. Since February of this year, LČR has been managed by Josef Vojáček, who previously led it from 2018 to 2021. In April, Vojáček told Mladá fronta Dnes that the enterprise is discussing with the Ministry of Agriculture whether to continue with the project.

"Finally, they will have a new administrative building, and of course, it will be made of wood," said Prime Minister Babiš on Facebook after Wednesday's visit to LČR, where the management introduced him to the plans. The construction, for which LČR has so far allocated nearly 80 million crowns, was also supported by Šebestyán's predecessor in the ministerial position, Marek Výborný (KDU-ČSL).

The enterprise submitted its application for a building permit at the end of last year and is now preparing a competition for a construction company. The actual construction could start in 2027 and will take place in phases. "The relocation to the new building is planned for the end of 2030, with the completion of the entire project in 2032," stated the spokesperson. The current headquarters will be demolished, and its area will be replaced by the new site.

LČR will finance the construction of the headquarters from its own resources. In the past, the enterprise established a special fund for the construction, but last year it transferred all 200 million crowns from it to the state budget. This year, the enterprise will begin to replenish the fund, contributing 300 million crowns from last year's profit.

The administrative part of the new headquarters will accommodate about 300 employees, and the corporate administration of the Elbe River and the Regional Directorate of LČR in eastern Bohemia will also be based in the building. The complex will also include a multipurpose hall for 130 people, operational facilities including a central archive, warehouses, and an equipment storage. It will also feature a parking lot for 300 cars, of which 50 will be for residents and visitors of the nearby urban forests.

The LČR headquarters is currently located in a panel building from the 1970s. The building, which was once the headquarters of East Bohemian State Forests, is, according to LČR, primarily statically unstable, uninsulated, and lacks air conditioning. If LČR were to decide on its reconstruction and completion, the cost would be around 1.5 billion crowns. For the construction of the complex, LČR has previously exchanged the necessary plots of land with the city of Hradec Králové.