The renovated Machoň Passage in Pardubice will come to life at the end of summer 2012

Pardubice - The Machoň Passage in the center of Pardubice is expected to open after renovations at the end of summer 2012. The city is already negotiating with potential tenants. The information center is set to relocate to the passage, and a café with an exhibition space will be established there. This was stated to journalists today by the Deputy Mayor Martin Bílek (SPP).
    "The passage is expected to open at the end of next summer, ensuring that all display windows are lit and all spaces are rented and functional. Negotiations are currently underway with potential tenants," Bílek said.
    The passage was designed by architect Ladislav Machoň in the 1920s. Since the 1960s, the city commissioned several architectural studies, but none of them were implemented. In 1995, Pardubice announced a new competition, and only at the beginning of this year did the renovations begin. The reconstruction is taking place in two phases and is expected to cost approximately 150 million crowns excluding VAT.
    The project has gradually changed since 1995, as new retail spaces, Grand and Afi Palace shopping centers, have emerged in the center of Pardubice. The ground floor of the passage will have shops, while offices will be located above. The new wing will offer apartments, and the restaurant that once existed in the basement of the passage will return, which was later replaced by a civil defense storage facility.
    However, the contract for the repair of the Machoň Passage is currently under investigation by the police. An audit revealed many mistakes by the City Development Fund, which awarded the contract.