Liberec is selling Simon's villa, asking for 17 million crowns for it

photo: slavnevily.cz

Liberec - The Liberec City Hall, which is missing money in its budget, is preparing to sell the pre-war Simon Villa, where an orphanage was located until recently. The architecturally valuable building is offered by the city for 17 million crowns, writes today's Liberec supplement of Mladá fronta Dnes. So far, only one interested party has applied for the tender. Opposition councilors criticize the city's plans. Liberec is already short of 20 million crowns in its budget.
      According to Jiří Šolec (Liberec to the Citizens), the deputy of the Liberec mayor, the budget shortfall will deepen further if the city does not obtain money from the sale of the Simon Villa. "We are already counting on income from privatization in the budget. It amounts to about twenty million crowns. If we do not obtain it, we will be lacking, which we really cannot afford right now," Šolec told the newspaper.
      According to opposition councilor Dana Lysáková (KSČM), the city should look for savings elsewhere. According to her, public funds are being wasted, for example, in municipal joint-stock companies. "Moreover, there could certainly be other uses for the former orphanage. For example, it could house a kindergarten," she stated. The city also approached the University of Liberec, but due to the need to renovate the villa first, they had no interest in purchasing it.
      The villa, located between Husova and Bendlova streets, was built in the 1920s for police inspector Adolf Simon. It was designed by architect Franz Radetzky. After World War II, it was nationalized and in 1953 began to serve as an orphanage.