Masaryk University repaired the Faculty of Arts for 485 million

Brno - The three-year process of demolition, construction, and relocating has concluded today with the grand opening of the new Faculty of Arts at Masaryk University in Brno on Arne Novák Street. The renovation of buildings A, B1, and the demolition of building B2 with the construction of a new one cost 485 million crowns, said the faculty's secretary Ivo Jurtík today to ČTK. The university received funding for the renovation from the European Operational Program for Research and Development for Innovations. In the coming years, it plans to renovate additional buildings on the campus with an estimated cost of 428 million, which should be financed by the state budget.
    The project included the demolition of the inadequate building B2 and the renovation of buildings A and B1. As a result, the faculty gained modern facilities for teaching and research and ample space that replaced inadequate facilities after many years. "In the new buildings, besides classrooms and offices, there is also a library archive, a faculty digitization department, and an underground parking lot. However, we mainly have far better conditions for scientific work, for instance, thanks to the laboratory for experimental research in the humanities," said the university's spokesperson Tereza Fojtová.
    Teaching in entirely new spaces will begin next week. The renovation was made possible by a project called the Centre for the Support of Humanities (CARLA), which allowed the faculty to acquire more than 10,000 m² of space. "We now have the necessary infrastructure for education and scientific research activities. The return of some workplaces to the main campus should also support the re-bonding of the faculty community, which has had and still has some of its departments located in many different places around Brno for years," said the Dean of the Faculty of Arts at MU Milan Pol.
    The campus also houses buildings C, D, E, and a library, which will also undergo renovation in the following years. "If everything goes well, we should know the construction contractor by May next year so that work can start by June at the latest," added Jurtík. The repairs are expected to include a complete reconstruction of the entrance to the campus from Arne Novák Street, the demolition of some structures, the construction of new ones, and the renovation of others. The estimated costs are around 428 million crowns.
    Masaryk University Brno has about 38,000 students across nine faculties. Of these, approximately 9,300 attend the Faculty of Arts.