The Liberec Lieben Palace will offer entertainment and education for children and adults

Liberec - The Liebieg Palace in Liberec, which has been reconstructed for more than a quarter of a billion crowns, will offer entertainment and education for children and adults. Around 50 non-profit and educational organizations will operate there. The palace was officially opened today and will be fully operational from autumn.

"Let’s hope that it is now ready to serve the people and bring them joy. However, it will not be functioning at 100 percent yet. We believe that we will reach that around September this year, as we have not yet managed to open, for example, the café. But I think nothing prevents people from finding their way here already now. They will definitely have a reason," said Michael Dufek, director of the municipal subsidy organization Community Center Contact, which is responsible for the operation of the palace.

For Contact, which previously resided in rented spaces, this is a significant change. "We previously had about 500 square meters of space available and were also in premises where we did not take care of technical management. This building has approximately 3000 square meters of floor space, 600 square meters of courtyard, and 4000 square meters of greenery. So the difference is really fundamental, and we are also taking on the role of managing the entire complex. So from about ten employees who worked in Palach Street, we are currently getting to 20. The maximum planned number is 24 full-time positions," Dufek added. Consequently, the annual budget for Contact is expected to increase from eight to more than 21 million crowns.

According to Dufek, the goal is for the palace to be open every day. It will host educational, leisure, and cultural events for children, adults in the productive age, and seniors. "We can even imagine that a family with intergenerational composition comes here and each goes to their own activity in the courtyard. One might go to a pottery course, another to an art activity, and the third to a movement session," Dufek noted. Inside the palace, there is a large hall, an art studio with a workshop, a gallery, computer and multifunctional rooms, and two gymnasiums. The complex also includes a room with a ceramic kiln and a restored historical greenhouse.

The reconstruction of the palace, which was built 150 years ago as a family residence for the Liebiegs, is the largest investment in Liberec in recent years. Most of the costs were covered by European subsidies. The extensive monumentally protected building has been empty since 2014, when the regional Gallery of Fine Arts moved out. Construction companies have been converting it into a community center since September 2020. However, according to Dufek, it is not definitively finished. Just from the outside, workers repaired the brick pavilion in the back garden as part of the project. "It still awaits renovation inside. We will be submitting a grant application to the Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the city. That is next on the agenda," Dufek added.