A company will be sought for the construction of a library in Ostrava

Ostrava – The Moravian-Silesian Region expects that it could announce a tender for the contractor of the new construction of the Moravian-Silesian Scientific Library, known as the Black Cube in Ostrava, this autumn. The project documentation is currently being finalized and the building permit is being prepared, said Deputy Governor Lukáš Curylo to ČTK. The estimated costs for the construction of the new library are 1.35 billion crowns.

"If everything goes well, we should have everything settled by this autumn, and the competition for the construction contractor will be announced," Curylo stated. The region expects to share the costs with the state and the city of Ostrava. According to the memorandum from 2018, the region should pay 400 million, the state 800 million crowns, and the city of Ostrava 150 million crowns.

"We know that the current situation regarding support for regional cultural activities from the state budget is limited to ten percent of the total value of the work. We are constantly negotiating with the ministries of culture and finance, as well as the entire government, to ensure that the conditions of the closed memorandum are respected and that this reduction does not apply to us," Curylo said.

The scientific library has been located in inadequate rented premises of the New Town Hall at Prokešovo Square in Ostrava since its establishment in 1951, and is visited by about 900 people daily. The original project for the Black Cube dates back to 2004. However, the construction was never realized due to high costs, and the region later decided to abandon the project, discussing the possible location of the new building within the National Cultural Landmark of the Lower Vítkovice Area. The current leadership of the region ultimately decided to return to the project and updated the project documentation. The project of the winning proposal from the architectural competition is being modified by its authors, architects Ladislav Kuba and Tomáš Pilař.

"We are about 1.5 months behind the schedule we set at the beginning of the preparations and upgrade of the Black Cube. This is because, in the meantime, the Skelet building has been completed, which is directly related to the area where the Black Cube will stand. We are addressing some access routes for the integrated rescue system and the connection to 28 October Street. Otherwise, there are currently no complications," Curylo stated. If there are no complications, the construction could open in 2023, at the latest by 2024.