The museum project in Karnola will be 48 million more expensive due to the fire

Krnov - The creation of the planned museum in Krnov's Karnola will become more expensive due to last year's deliberately set fire. The project costs have increased by 48 million crowns to 171 million after revision. The city is seeking additional funding sources. CTK was informed of this by city hall spokesperson Dita Círová. Culture Minister Antonín Staněk (ČSSD) said today that subsidies for removing emergency states or contributions from the office's contributory organizations, which will participate in drying and restoring the salvaged fabric samples, could help.

The city wants to finance the project with a European grant. It has 123 million crowns available. An additional ten million crowns was released by the region shortly after the fire to address the most significant damages and save the damaged equipment.

"Due to the fire, which broke out just before the facility was about to be repaired, we had to update the project documentation for both the reconstruction of the building and the interiors. This showed that the project costs would be higher. They rose from 123 million to 171 million crowns, while the grant from the Integrated Regional Operational Program amounts to a maximum of 95 million crowns," said Monika Vyležíková from the strategic development department.

Therefore, the city is now trying to obtain funding from other sources as well. The Moravian-Silesian Region was the first to provide a specific subsidy of ten million crowns. The city's share now amounts to 66 million crowns. The councilors approved this amount.

After the visit, Staněk stated that the ministry would look for a way to help. According to him, the city could apply for a grant from the fund for dealing with emergency conditions. "This would be a way. I will also collaborate on signing the contract between Krnov and the National Technical Museum and the National Library. These contributory organizations of the ministry will participate in drying the salvaged fabric samples. We can also involve staff from the Museum of Applied Arts, who also have experience in fabric restoration," the minister said.

Krnov's Deputy Mayor Jan Krkoška (ANO) told CTK that the city would seek additional funds. "In October, we have another meeting at the Ministry of Regional Development," he said. He also hopes for further assistance from the Moravian-Silesian Region.

The former textile factory complex burned down on December 20. The fire mainly wreaked havoc in the rare protected sample room of fabrics, which has been preserved in the state of its last working day. The city wanted to build a museum in the area; the project was already prepared, and a contractor was being sought. The tender was then canceled by Krnov. A new one will now be announced.

The suspects of the arson are two fourteen-year-old schoolboys. However, some people involved in saving the damaged equipment believe that the plan was too well organized for it to be a spur-of-the-moment act. "I think someone influenced them. But I can't say why it would have happened," said Andrea Šírová from the heritage care department of Krnov city hall earlier to CTK.