Plzeň as a city of culture will lead culture in the EU in 2015

Plzeň - European Capital of Culture (EHMK), which Plzeň will become in 2015, is understood by EU countries as an equivalent to the European presidency. Given that the "real" presidency for the Czech Republic did not go very well, Plzeň could improve this reputation, it was stated today at the international conference Europe Day in Plzeň.
     "The title of EHMK is one of the most prestigious and effective in Europe and this year it celebrates 25 years. For Plzeň, it is a unique opportunity to present the city and increase its prestige in Europe," said Jacqueline Pacaud, who is responsible for EHMK at the European Commission. According to her, every euro invested in this initiative returns eightfold in the form of tourists and other social and cultural benefits. Pacaud confirmed that if European culture ministers approve Plzeň as EHMK on May 19, the city will receive a grant of 1.5 million euros (37 million CZK) from the Commission. According to her, Plzeň can only succeed on a pan-European level if it comes up with innovative projects and gains support from national institutions and local entities.
      Mayor Martin Baxa considers the success of Plzeň to be historic. The city does not view EHMK as a cultural festival, but wants Plzeň to "transform as a whole and deeply" because of it. "We have areas of brownfields and structures that we need to support. At the same time, the whole region needs to be more interconnected," he added. Plzeň wants to involve mainly the university and entrepreneurs who will benefit from its victory.
      Norwegian Stavanger used the title EHMK in 2008 to fundamentally transform the former center of oil production. "The city had to find a new livelihood and replace its business. One of the options was culture," said city representative Rolf Noras. For EHMK, it utilized the local nature and fjords, for example, for dances on the lake, poetry, and fairy tales in nature. Cultural officials have remained there to this day and collaborate with schools. The city successfully attracted world architects to design wooden buildings, and the port is now more popular. Technology was inspired by art, and industrial parks underwent significant changes, he added. A huge contemporary art center was created from a former brewery. The city also established a special fund that allows projects to continue until 2017. "You have to build a program that couldn't be done anywhere else. It's necessary to be a bit crazy," Noras added.
      The third-largest Austrian city, Linz, is roughly the same size as Plzeň. Thanks to EHMK in 2009, a technological center for the region was created that attracted people through its combination of culture and nature, competing with Salzburg and Vienna. For EHMK over a five-year period, the city had 70 million euros (1.7 billion CZK), of which more than a seventh came from sponsors. "61 percent of the budget went to programming and 19 percent to marketing. We focused on experimental art and technology," said project representative Walter Putschögel. Over four years, more than three million visitors attended, with 5,000 artists from 66 countries performing at 770 events. Linz continues to benefit from the tourism increase. 24 projects were launched after 2009.
     "EHMK is not a playground for politicians. Thanks to the project, we united the region with 53 cities," said Hanns-Dietrich Schmidt from Essen/Ruhr 2010. Culture gave the Rhine region, an area affected by the decline of heavy industry, a new vision. The non-touristy area attracted 11 million tourists in four years. The EHMK budget was the same as Linz’s. Billions of crowns from European funds flowed into investments that completely changed the region.
     Hungarian Pécs, where industry ruled for 150 years similarly to Plzeň, became EHMK in 2010. It built its project on strong collaboration with cities from which local ethnic minorities originate. "These joint projects were the most successful. The city has significantly transformed thanks to EHMK, and the cultural district is still being built. People are proud of EHMK, which is important," said one of the project creators, Tomáš Szalay. He recommended that Plzeň not have as many events as Pécs, which had 4,600 of them.