Litomyšl wants to decide on the sale of Villa Klára before summer

Litomyšl – Three interested parties in the Klára villa in Litomyšl, for which the city has no use and lacks funds for repairs, will submit their refined offers by April 4. The deadline has been slightly extended due to the spring holidays, which will be in the Pardubice region in mid-March. The city leadership will evaluate the proposals and present them for decision to the councilors either later that month or at the June meeting, said deputy mayor Radomil Kašpar to ČTK.

"The offers should still be discussed. It is a question of whether this will be an internal or public discussion. Depending on how everything is managed, the council will discuss the proposals," Kašpar stated.

The interested parties have offered similar prices for the property, ranging between seven and eight million crowns, estimating the investment for repairs at up to 100 million crowns. An important criterion in the decision-making process will be the planned usage, the benefit to residents, and the respect for the historical character of the site near the castle.

The AGM Holding company, in collaboration with the Školamyšl association, is interested in the villa and has submitted a project aimed at creating a new center for education and social services in the villa. The facility is expected to include support for a secondary school connected to the activities of the Školamyšl Elementary School, a children's group, a café, and an educational center linked with a gallery and accommodation in the attic. Kubík's company plans to convert the building into accommodation facilities and a rehabilitation center on the ground floor. Tramon has submitted a proposal to establish the Klára Health Clinic, which would offer above-standard private consulting and rehabilitative medical care along with the possibility of accommodation in the attic.

The city wanted to sell the Klára villa last year, but none of the proposals from two investors gained support among the councilors. In the previous competition, the city set a uniform selling price of six million crowns, with the main criteria for selection being future usage, benefits for residents, and respect for the historical character of the site. In the current tender, the price has not been set, and the conditions have been more flexible.

Litomyšl acquired the building in 2020 for five million crowns from the Pardubice region. Until 2018, it housed a long-term care facility, but the building was in poor condition, and the regional authority relocated the facility to the premises of the Litomyšl Hospital.

The villa, built in 1895, is in the neo-Renaissance style and was commissioned by brewer Karel Sedlák from Litomyšl. From 1929, it was the Home of Saint Klára under the administration of the Order of Saint Charles Borromeo, which Sedlák donated to the association. Since 1949, it has been state property. A department for long-term care has been there since 1974.