The renovation of the Palace of the World is set to begin in May and be completed in the fall of 2019

Prague - The reconstruction of the Palace of Light is set to begin in May of this year and be completed in the fall of 2019. This was agreed upon by the Deputy Mayor of Prague 8, Petr Vilgus (Green Party), and the representative of the Italian owner, Antonio Crispino. Marcela Voženílková, spokeswoman for Prague 8, informed ČTK. There will be shops on the ground floor and apartments on the upper floors. The palace has been deteriorating for many years. The owner had previously received a fine, and Prague 8 filed a proposal for the liquidation of his company, Crispino Properties. The palace, built in the 1930s, was made famous by the writer Bohumil Hrabal and is a cultural monument.

“Many mayors and deputy mayors of Prague 8 have met with Mr. Crispino, and the commitment to complete the building's reconstruction has been expressed many times. However, as a resident of Palmova, I hope that Mr. Crispino is speaking sincerely and that he will meet the deadlines he promised during the negotiations,” said Vilgus. In the past, he stated that if the owner is unable to take care of the building, he should sell it.

The managing director of Crispino Properties, Miroslava Nečasová, reportedly said at the meeting, according to Vilgus, that the poor condition of the building was caused by a change in the funding of Crispino's real estate activities. She reportedly resolved this and work on new windows should start in May 2018, followed by the facade. “According to the owner, the exterior work on the building should be completed by October 2018. Demolition work is also to be ongoing inside the Palace. The interiors are expected to be finished by the summer of the following year,” said Vilgus.

After the reconstruction, the owner plans to have shops and services in the basement and ground floor, and mainly apartments for long-term hotel rentals on the upper floors. “I also proposed the creation of a non-commercial space dedicated to the memory of Bohumil Hrabal. I believe it would be appropriate to restore a library here that references the writer who is inextricably linked to the building,” said Vilgus.

Crispino also owns the adjacent neglected plot at the corner of Voctářova and Elsnicova squares. This should be cleaned and fenced off later this year. In the future, the owner plans to build an apartment building on it.

The restoration of the palace has been discussed since 2006 when the town hall approved a reconstruction study. However, since then, the repairs have not made significant progress. Although Crispino had some work done inside, according to the town hall, the reconstruction work ended up harming the building.

Crispino purchased the building in 1998. In July 2011, Prague 8 fined him 180,000 crowns, and in September of the same year, filed a proposal for the liquidation of Crispino Properties. In 2013, a fine of two million was considered, but it was ultimately not imposed.

The Palace of Light was built between 1932 and 1934 by builder František Havlena. The reinforced concrete building was named after the entrepreneur who commissioned it. The complex includes residential and commercial buildings with two basements and a cinema hall. The first floor housed a restaurant, café, and gaming hall. In 2002, the building was damaged by flooding. Since 2003, the complex has been a cultural monument.