Published: 08.09.2020
Recently, an association called Central Polytechnic Workshops was established in Pardubice. (CPW). The fundamental mission of the association is to connect public, private and non-profit entities in order to promote education, training and awareness, and to develop a functional cooperation to support lifelong learning (from 3 to 99 years) through informal, interest-based and lifelong learning.
The objective of the association is to raise the level of education by offering a variety of high-quality services in the area of education, training and awareness, where these services become part of a comprehensive and accessible system. The founders of the association are the Statutory City of Pardubice, Foundation for the Development of the City of Pardubice, and the Regional Economic Chamber of the Pardubice Region. The Board of the Association has the following members representing the Statutory City of Pardubice: Mgr. Jakub Rychtecký, Deputy Mayor (Chairman), Mgr. Bc. Gisela Kostelecká, Prof. Ing. Petr Němec, Ph.D., Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Chemical Technology, University of Pardubice. This act has intensified the cooperation between the City and the Faculty. Other members of the Board of the Association are Ing. Martin Charvát, Mayor of Pardubice (for the Foundation for the Development of the City of Pardubice) and Jozef Koprivňanský, MBA (Chairman of the Regional Economic Chamber of the Pardubice Region).
The objective of the project is to include the former Automatic Mills built at the beginning of the 20th century by the famous architect Josef Gočar in the new premises where this national heritage building will occupy the central position. The plan of the City of Pardubice, the Pardubice Region and a private investor is to create a new multi-functional urban area including cultural and educational institutions and private activities. By removing some of the existing buildings, the front portal will become a dominant with an entrance arch conspicuously reminiscent of the Ishtar Gate in the famous Babylon, and the whole area will become visible from the historical part of the city. A crucial aspect in the revival of the area is the establishment of new public areas.
The inside of the new complex will be dominated by the Mill Courtyard which will become a live space connecting all of the functions of the adjacent buildings. An integral part of the overall concept is the colour design. The colour of the new structures will reflect the brick design of the Automatic Mills. In the northern part of the complex, Šépka Architects located the CPW adjacent to the mills structure to unite the whole area. This excellent educational centre will be intended primarily for elementary and secondary school students and will offer state-of-the-art classrooms and laboratories for technical and scientific disciplines. The upper parts of the building will provide a calm space for students, while the City Gallery located in the lower part will be connected with the public space. Another asset of the complex is the amphitheatre for 250 people suitable for a variety of open-air events in summer.
The total costs of the project including the Central Polytechnic Workshops and the City Gallery amount to less than 352 million CZK. However, the city government believes that more than half of the expenditure will be covered by the ITI Hradec-Pardubice Agglomeration.
