The former prison of Brno has been declared a cultural monument by the ministry

Brno - The Ministry of Culture declared the former prison located on Cejl street in Brno a cultural monument. CTK was informed of this today by Matěj Hollan (Žít Brno), the deputy mayor responsible for culture. According to him, the decision is not final, and the city has the option to appeal, along with the private owner, who owns part of the building, within 15 days. Hollan is still unsure how Brno will respond to the decision. The city wants to develop a Creative Center in the dilapidated and long-empty prison at a cost of hundreds of millions of crowns for artist gatherings. Due to the ministry's decision, the work on the project will become more expensive by millions of crowns.

According to Hollan, the ministry declared the building a monument for several reasons. "It is an old classical building, it is unique in terms of penal history, as there is no other such structure in our country, and the most important aspect is the history associated with the prison," Hollan stated. The prison was established in the 18th century. It served its purpose from 1784 to 1956. It was then replaced by the prison in Bohunice.

The declaration as a monument was requested by the National Heritage Institute. "We considered the values of the building so clear-cut that we recommended declaring it a cultural monument. Not only is it a historic building, but it is also a memorial site from the Nazi and communist eras. Therefore, the planned modifications should maintain a respectful approach," said Zdeněk Vácha, the director of the National Heritage Institute in Brno, to CTK.

The spokesperson for the Ministry of Culture, Simona Cigánková, told CTK that the ministry made the decision last week. However, she did not want to disclose the result because the decision has not yet become legally binding. "If no one appeals, it will become legally binding after 15 days. Then we could start the architectural competition for the center's design and define with the National Heritage Institute the limits for how to handle the building. In case of an appeal, this will delay things for some time," Hollan added.

He does not yet know how the city will approach the decision. In the past, it did not want to declare the prison a monument for fear that it would increase reconstruction costs. Strict rules must be followed for cultural monuments. "We respect the history of the building, and even if it were not declared a monument, we would treat it with respect. However, now we will have to address two important issues. After the declaration, we must preserve the original trusses. To do this, we would need to keep the attic closed, which we wanted to utilize. We will also be addressing the construction of vehicle access from Bratislavská street. Therefore, it is possible that we will ask for a correction of the decision. But it is not possible to anticipate yet," Hollan added.

Vácha welcomes projects for the use of the building. "A building without a purpose is doomed to destruction and decay. We support social utilization and accessibility to the public because when it finds its use, it guarantees some future. Without use, the object is at risk. And if social activities can be ensured in the property, it will help the entire part of Brno that is socially and demographically marginalized," Vácha noted. The prison is located in a socially excluded locality.

Brno recently completed remediation work on the building intended to save it from further deterioration. The work cost five million and focused mainly on repairing the trusses and the roof, which was leaking inside. The rescue repairs took about six months. A historical and architectural survey was also conducted, revealing the location of the sought execution site, which was located in the women's courtyard between the windows of cell 64. The planned center is to include studios, exhibition spaces, and historical exhibits.