The case of the exchange of the Edelmann Palace in Olomouc is heading to court

Olomouc - The case of the planned exchange of the historic Edelmann Palace in Olomouc is heading to court. The expert who assessed the municipal property for the city hall has been charged by the prosecutor. She faces up to ten years in prison for false testimony and a fraudulent expert report. The city wanted to exchange the palace for land in a gap on Denisova Street. The city hall intended to sell the land to the Museum of Art, which was preparing to build the Central European Forum there. If the contract had come into effect, the city would have been damaged by at least 23 million crowns, according to the police. The exchange ultimately fell through.
    The expert's report allegedly grossly underestimated the price of the city palace and conversely overestimated the price of the private land for which the city hall wanted to exchange the palace. "An indictment for the same crime was filed on Wednesday, as proposed by the police officers. The case should be dealt with by the Olomouc District Court," said prosecutor Petr Matoušek today to ČTK.
    The Olomouc city council decided on the exchange in March 2009. They approved that Olomouc would sell the Edelmann Palace to businessman Miroslav Barnet from the Hanácká real estate agency for 38 million crowns. Part of the price was to be paid by the businessman through the transfer of his land on Denisova Street, which the Museum of Art in Olomouc needed for the construction of the future Central European Forum. He valued the 395-square-meter plot at 9.5 million crowns. The city then intended to promptly sell it to the museum. Thirty-two out of 41 present councilors agreed to the sale of the Edelmann Palace, while eight were against. The actions of the councilors who voted for the exchange had already been investigated by the police based on a criminal complaint. However, the prosecution was postponed.
    The contract for the transfer of the palace was conditional upon the release of a grant from the Ministry of Culture for the Central European Forum project. However, the grant was not obtained. The palace thus ultimately remained with the city; the validity of the contract expired at the end of June.
    The historically valued palace is located at Horní náměstí opposite the town hall and dates back to the 16th century. It contains two apartments and 1,262 square meters of non-residential space.
    The Central European Forum was officially established in June 2008 in the presence of ministers and state secretaries from the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia. The project's path faced not only issues with the land but also the fact that it failed to secure a half-billion crown grant from European funds. The cultural center in the architecturally bold building was to showcase modern art pieces from across Central Europe.