Modern facilities for students and teachers. This is the aim of the reconstruction of the main building of the Faculty of Education of Palacký University on Žižkov Square. The faculty will hand over the construction to the contractor at the end of February and it should be ready at the end of January 2026.
The main building of the Faculty of Education has been standing on Olomouc's Žižkov Square since the 1930s. It used to serve the needs of the army. Palacký University took it over at the beginning of the 1990s and gradually adapted the building to its needs. However, the reconstruction never took place on the scale that is now ready.
"We have before us a vision of a modern building fit for education in the 21st century. Our goal is to renovate the building to meet the conditions for modern teaching. We want to ventilate, lighten the corridors and staircases and renovate the existing, no longer suitable classroom spaces. We are also thinking about greater safety and comfort of students and we are not forgetting about students with specific needs, i.e. the necessary barrier-free adaptations," said Vojtech Regec, Dean of the Faculty of Arts at UP.
The construction work, which will begin at the end of February, is divided into two phases so that only one part of the building can be closed at a time. It will also include a comprehensive refurbishment of the central part of the building. Not only will the interior of the faculty undergo remodelling, but the overall appearance of the building will also be affected. The individual floors will be connected by new lifts and at the same time a new staircase will be built in the central part, which will ensure easier servicing of the fifth floor. The flooring and lighting in the classrooms will be replaced. At the same time, the acoustics will be improved and the electrical wiring in the classrooms will be added, possibly blacking out the windows. An electronic fire alarm system and an evacuation public address system will also be added to the building for a higher level of security. The faculty will also make use of new architectural features and modify the main entrance to the building.
"We are looking forward to the fact that the originally military building will finally be transformed into a modern university building, which will follow the completion of the faculty in 2013. All works will be carried out during its full operation," added the dean of PdF UP.
He stressed that the reconstruction will require maximum mutual cooperation. It will only be possible to access the building from the courtyards on 17 November Street or Jiřího z Poděbrad Street, or directly from the entrance on Jiřího z Poděbrad Street (only with an employee or student card).
"I appeal for mutual tolerance, it will not be an easy period. It goes without saying that we will have to respect the constraints and cope with the organisational demands of the construction. One part of the building will always be reconstructed, the other will be used. Therefore, we have slightly shifted the practices and made some changes, but otherwise the teaching should proceed as it is planned in a given semester," added Vojtech Regec. The renovations will also limit parking options at the faculty and staff will make greater use of parking on the Envelopa campus.
As far as teaching spaces are concerned, the faculty will use not only the part of the building that will not be under reconstruction at the moment, but also other parts of the faculty that are located in the UP Art Centre or in the building in Purkrabská Street. In this context, Dean Regec highly appreciated the help of the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Philosophy, which have helped within their capabilities with the missing classrooms for teaching at the UP Faculty of Arts.
The total cost of the repair, which will be carried out by Metrostav DIZ, s. r. o., will be more than one hundred and eighty million crowns. Part of the funds will be covered by subsidies from the European Union and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic. Almost half of the costs will be covered by the faculty from its own funds. PdF UP regularly informs about the reconstruction and its schedule here (in czech).
