Jihlava is supposed to address the winter stadium according to Babiš, no subsidy has been promised

Jihlava - Jihlava should repair the Horácký winter stadium. The condition of the sports facility, which is home to the legendary hockey club Dukla Jihlava, was labeled by Finance Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) as a disgrace after his visit today. According to him, the region should contribute a third of the investment amounting to hundreds of millions of crowns, with the state contributing the same amount to the city. However, Babiš did not promise the city a state subsidy, justifying it as an issue for the new government. He suggested that Jihlava could also borrow the money.

Discussions about the need for investments in the dilapidated stadium have been ongoing in Jihlava for several years. The ANO movement has been in charge of the city since last November, when it took over the positions from the recalled ODS and Forum Jihlava councilors. The city council coalition consists of ANO, ČSSD, and the Christian Democrats.

The Horácký winter stadium was opened in 1956 and received its roofing in the 1960s. The city hall is now considering several solution options, from repairs to building a multifunctional hall at the same location to constructing a stadium on the outskirts of the city. The city administration's latest goal is to select a final option in the spring, with more votes currently favoring keeping the stadium in the center. "At the moment, studies are being prepared, where financial analyses of all available options are being conducted," said Deputy Mayor Radek Popelka from ANO.

"At first glance, I say it should be built from scratch," Babiš said. He pointed out that there are parking issues in the center of Jihlava, and the hockey club would also have to move to another city during the reconstruction.

Constructing a new stadium outside the city was also deemed the best solution today by HC Dukla manager Bedřich Ščerban. According to him, the old stadium could then serve for training young hockey players. Ščerban noted that in the eight years he has led the club, only the most necessary repairs have been made to the stadium. "People are increasingly dissatisfied; fewer and fewer of them are attending," he said.

According to Popelka, the city hall has found vacant land for building the stadium on the outskirts of the city, for instance, near the road leading to Žďár nad Sázavou. The proposal for a new stadium to be built from scratch is currently considered overpriced, but it could be "trimmed down." Then it would cost roughly the same as the reconstruction of the old stadium, which is about 700 million CZK.