In the Vřídlo Colonnade, they will begin installing the ceiling above the technologies

Karlovy Vary - Karlovy Vary have selected a contractor who will demolish and construct a new ceiling above the technologies in the underground at the Vřídelní colonnade. The winning company will complete it for 10.8 million crowns. The costs were estimated at 9.9 million crowns according to the project, said Petr Bursík (ODS), the deputy mayor of Karlovy Vary, to ČTK.

"A selection process for the contractor for the demolition of the original ceiling and the construction of the new one has taken place. I expect the construction to start sometime in mid-July. The construction period according to the contract is 28 weeks, but we anticipate that further steps, such as glass walls around the Vřídelní colonnade hall, could take place in the fall," Bursík stated.

This is another step in the rescue of the colonnade, which has been in a state of emergency. The technologies for capturing and processing the thermal water located underground beneath the colonnade have been replaced. It was the aggressive thermal water that damaged the structure of the colonnade over the decades to such an extent that it had to be partially closed, and the iconic eruption of the Vřídlo was temporarily relocated in front of the colonnade.

According to Bursík, the replacement of the technology cost 14.2 million crowns. The city has so far allocated another approximately 27 million crowns for the construction part of the colonnade's rescue, which was built in the 1970s.

Although the city council's decision to announce an international architectural competition for the solution of the colonnade and its surroundings is still in effect, the colonnade could continue to serve for at least ten years before the construction of a new colonnade resulting from the competition. In terms of technical condition, however, according to Bursík, the colonnade could serve for another 30 years or even more.