The reconstruction of Zlín's Čiperova villa will be completed by the end of September according to plan

Zlín - The reconstruction of the Čipera villa in Zlín is expected to be completed by the end of this September. It could then open to the public in the second half of autumn, said the governor of the Zlín region, Radim Holiš (ANO), to journalists today during a site inspection. The villa will become a cultural and creative center for the Zlín region. There will also be an exhibition dedicated to Dominik Čipera, a former director of Baťa, Zlín's mayor, and Czechoslovakia's minister.

The architecturally valuable villa of Dominik Čipera was built in 1942 according to the design of architect Vladimír Karfík. Since 1947, the building served as a children's home, and until recently there was a facility for children requiring immediate assistance. In 2002, the villa with its garden was registered on the list of immovable cultural monuments. The reconstruction of the villa began last summer, and it will cost 205 million crowns, of which 100 million will be covered by grants from the National Recovery Plan.

This is one of the largest investments in the region. "The Čipera villa will be not only in Zlín but in the entire Zlín region one of the flagship symbols of history that the region carries. Therefore, we are placing maximum emphasis on the project," said the governor. A cultural and lecture center will be created there. "We want people to meet here, for entrepreneurs to use it for their activities, and for the Čipera villa to come to life again," Holiš stated. Following the construction work, restoration efforts will commence, as well as the furnishing of the interior and outdoor landscaping.

The building will be home to a cultural and creative center where artists, representatives of cultural organizations, and students from art schools will meet. There will be classrooms for educational workshops in collaboration with regional specialized schools. A ceramic kiln and tools for glass engraving will also be present. Spaces will also be created for photography and computer graphics. The region also wants to make the villa and park accessible to the public. The reconstruction of the gardener's house will create accommodation space. An exhibition dedicated to Čipera, created by the Regional Gallery of Fine Arts in Zlín, will also be included.

The villa has a new roof, rough demolition work is complete, and builders have cleaned the property of non-original parts. "We have completed all demolition work from the basement to the roof. The engineering networks, electrical, air conditioning, and cooling systems are being installed," said Pavel Hrabalík, a representative of the contractor, to reporters today. The goal is to preserve as many original elements as possible; wall coverings, doors will be refurbished, windows will be repaired, functional parts of the floors will be restored, and the facade will also be repaired. Builders are laying engineering networks around the villa, and making ground adjustments for parking lots and sidewalks.