The repair of the town hall in Jablonec will be extended

Jablonec nad Nisou - The repair of the facade of the town hall in Jablonec nad Nisou will be extended. The tower is in worse condition than anticipated, which means the work will last until next year, said Markéta Hozová, a spokesperson for the city council, today to ČTK. The facade repair began in May and was supposed to be completed this year. While the western side of the town hall will receive a final facade before winter, the repair of the tower will take longer. It is not yet clear how much it will increase the originally approved ten-million budget for the reconstruction.

"When the expert company removed the old plaster from the tower, problems emerged that could not be read from the incomplete construction documentation. The technology used in the 1930s no longer meets today’s standards. The deteriorated state of the tower has also been affected by weather conditions - wind, rain, and frost. All of this means that the tower will require a more thorough repair, which will postpone the completion of the facade to next year," explained the reasons for the extension of the work by the Deputy Mayor for Development Lukáš Pleticha (ČSSD).

The Jablonec town hall is a significant building of Czechoslovak interwar architecture. It was built from 1931 to 1933 according to the design of architect Karel Winter. The monument-protected building is gradually undergoing renovation, with the city investing over 35 million crowns into it over the past five years. This year, work continues on the western part of the building, which will receive a new facade; all metal elements will also be repaired and replaced. The project includes the restoration of 48 tower windows and 14 atypical American windows on the western wing. These were already in a state of emergency and could not be opened.

The repair of part of the facade and the 51-meter high tower began in May, preceded by a thorough survey. Based on it, it was decided that the town hall will have a brizolit scraped plaster in the shade of light ochre, including window frames, known as chambrans. These will differ only in that, unlike the plaster, they will be smooth. However, the tower will remain protected for the winter only by a core plaster treated with penetration. "In spring, scaffolding will be set up again, the tower will be treated with penetration again, and only then will the final plaster be applied," Pleticha described the planned procedure for the work.