Jeseník water park will not be built, as it could not secure funding from banks

Jeseník - Jeseník will ultimately not build a new aquapark, which it wanted to use to revive tourism in this mountain region. The town hall did not manage to secure 50 million crowns for the technical services, which were to be awarded the contract worth approximately 200 million crowns, during negotiations with the banks. Therefore, the council decided today that the city would not continue negotiating the loan with banks, would not provide a subsidy to the technical services, and the already initiated tender for the construction of the aquapark would be terminated. The aquapark had to be completed by March 2015 in order for the city not to lose European subsidies.
    "Unfortunately, this is the definitive end of the project," said the mayor of Jeseník, Marie Fomiczewová (ČSSD), to ČTK after the council meeting, stating that in the following years it will probably not be possible to obtain subsidies for the aquapark, without which the construction is unfeasible.
    The city found itself in a difficult situation because no bank applied to the tender for financing part of the aquapark's construction. However, a tender for the aquapark's construction had already begun. Therefore, the mayor today proposed to the councilors to agree on further separate negotiations with banks through a so-called negotiation procedure without publication, but she was unsuccessful. Eventually, the councilors approved the proposal of Jeseník's deputy mayor Libor Halas (Young for Jeseník) that the city would not provide a subsidy to the technical services financed through a loan, and the already initiated tender for the construction supplier would be canceled.
    Seven companies or associations had expressed interest in building the aquapark in Jeseník. The applicants submitted price offers ranging from 185 to 214 million crowns. "We cannot leave the tender (for the aquapark's construction) open and not continue with the selection process for banks," summarized the difficult situation the mayor. Advisors warned councilors today that negotiations with banks could end later than the February deadline for awarding the contract. Jeseník did receive a promise from two banks at the last moment, but it was only indefinite.
    The construction of the aquapark, which was to be located on the site of the current city swimming pool, has been in preparation by the city for several years. The preparation of the project cost the town hall approximately 20 million crowns. Jeseník was to receive nearly 80 million crowns for construction from European funds, and it wanted to obtain additional funds from donations and the sale of city property, while the rest was to be covered by a fifty-million crown loan from the city.
    Councilors who disagreed with the aquapark project argued today not only the financial burden of the project but also that construction had begun on a thermal swimming pool in nearby Velké Losiny, which would compete with the Jeseník aquapark. This was not agreed upon by former mayor of Jeseník and MP Jiří Krátký (ČSSD), who stated that the aquapark would mainly be visited by guests from the north of Jeseník and Poland.
    Jeseník faced the risk of having to hold a referendum due to the construction. However, the petition organizers were unable to gather enough signatures. Analyses suggest that the city would have to subsidize the aquapark by nearly ten million crowns annually. This amount includes the repayment of the fifty-million crown loan spread over 15 years. Even then, the town hall would have to invest several million crowns annually into the operation of the aquapark.