The representatives decided to abandon the original library project in Ostrava

Ostrava - The Moravian-Silesian regional councilors decided at their meeting today, despite opposition from ODS and KDU-ČSL, that the region would abandon the original project for the construction of the Moravian-Silesian Scientific Library in Ostrava. The region was promised 600 million crowns from European funds for the library, which it now wants to use in the areas of education and healthcare. However, the opposition ODS intends to request the European Commission to prevent the transfer of funds and instead keep them allocated for the library's construction.
    The construction of the library has become a subject of dispute between the current government (ČSSD and KSČM) and the former government (ODS and KDU-ČSL). Both sides are now accusing each other of politicizing the entire situation. The new regional leadership does not want to build the library according to the original project, which estimated that the library, including a parking facility, would cost about 1.5 billion crowns. The construction was supposed to be financed from state, regional, and European funds. According to the new proposal by the region, the library should cost a maximum of 850 million crowns, with only the state and the region financially contributing to its construction. Additionally, the library will not be built according to the design that won the architectural competition.
    Opposition councilors argue that it is nonsensical for the region to say that the funds allocated for the library will be moved to other areas. According to them, transferring the funds is not that simple. Zbyněk Stanjura (ODS) told journalists today that ODS would instead write to the European Commission to ensure that the library project is not excluded from the regional operational program. "The region's leadership will pursue this, we will turn to them with the opposite opinion and ask that they keep it as it is. If the European Commission complies with us, then there are only two options, either the 600 million goes solely to the library or it will return to Brussels," said Stanjura. He added that if the European Commission approves the region's request and removes the library construction project from the regional operational program, then the funds could be used in other areas. "But certainly not this year, I believe not even next year, the procedure will take longer, so theoretically it could happen sometime in 2011," added Stanjura.
    Governor Jaroslav Palas (ČSSD) today accused the opposition of fighting against its own region with their intentions and labeled ODS councilors as detractors of the region. "I understand what reasonable opposition politics are and I also understand what it means when someone is harming. The regional leadership of ODS has shown several times that it cannot handle its position in transitioning to the opposition," responded Palas. The region’s leadership also believes that the European Commission will have no reason to transfer the funds allocated for the library to other areas.
    The existing library has been located in inadequate premises since its inception in 1951, and the commencement of the new library's construction has been postponed several times, among other things due to financing problems. The region wants to build the new library in a cheaper variant by 2014. The Moravian-Silesian Scientific Library is currently located in rented premises of the New Town Hall. It has over a million titles in its collection and is among the largest in the country. It is visited by an average of 1000 people daily.