Split Old Town Hall Almost Ready After HRK 9.2 million Renovation

“Despite the pandemic, we have completed the realization of this extremely demanding activity within the Palace of Life – City of Changes project, following the previously announced deadlines. There is still some work left, but the facility is being prepared for a technical inspection that will take place tomorrow,” says Radojka Tomašević, Head of the Service for International and EU Projects of the City of Split. This is a comprehensive renovation and valorization of the Old Town Hall, in which 9.2 million kuna was invested from the strategic City of Split EU project “Palace of Life – City of Changes.” Namely, in March 2020, in parallel with the Covid-19 pandemic and after the completion of archaeological research, the adaptation and arrangement of this valuable city’s cultural heritage began.

The Old Town Hall is an object of monumental importance, protected as part of the old town on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and an individually protected property. By renovating the Hall, Split gets a modern multifunctional space for exhibitions, lectures, smaller concerts, receptions, and other purposes. A smaller part is dedicated to the permanent exhibition that thematizes the City Hall through history.

There is a reception with a souvenir shop on the ground floor of the newly renovated Town Hall and an exhibition space of about 50 square meters. The first floor is reached by a semicircular staircase and an elevator to a large exhibition, multifunctional space with storage, and a smaller permanent display, which is also a reading room. Visitors will sit there and read books from the shelves but not take them out, as they are protected by special technology. According to sources, a book by Robert Adam about Diocletian’s Palace was exhibited in the 19th century City Hall. A facsimile of that same book will be displayed under glass, and on a touch screen, it will be viewed and read.

With the removal of modern interventions in the interior, stone fragments came to light, of which the Gothic arch stands out, which extends through two floors and is additionally prominent in the space.

On the second floor, there is a large multifunctional space with a projector for lectures or exhibitions. There is a storage room, installation systems for ventilation, and regulation of microclimatic conditions in the attic.

The exhibition space is relieved and cleaned. The first and second floors have controlled microclimatic conditions that allow the display of the most sensitive and valuable exhibits in the world, with a modern lighting flexible LED system without UV radiation with the ability to regulate lighting intensity. It will range from 200 lux for paintings to 50 lux for other exhibits made of paper, textiles, metal, glass, and the like.

For years, it has been pointed out that the potential of heritage, especially Split’s, is not sufficiently developed or adequately presented. It ultimately remains unrecognized and generates costs instead of profit and jobs. Preserving and strengthening the cultural identity, quality, and thoughtful restoration of heritage also increases the destination’s recognition on the market. To this end, it took almost two years to prepare and resolve property-legal and other preconditions for the application of the project “Palace of Life – City of Changes” for funding from EU funds.

The renovation of the Old Town Hall was made according to the Office of Authorized Architect Josipa Ružić. Designer Nikolina Jelavić Mitrović is the author of the interior, as well as the permanent exhibition, designed according to the concept of Dr. Josip Belamarić. Neir d.o.o worked hundreds of ours under the constant supervision of the Conservation Department in Split and the expert supervision of Atesti i zaštita d.o.o and Linir d.o.o.

The reconstruction value of the Old Town Hall is worth HRK 9.2 million, provided within the strategic EU project “Palace of Life – the City of Changes” implemented by the Service for International and EU Projects with funds provided through the ITU mechanism Urban agglomerations of Split. The total value of the project “Palace of Life – City of Changes” is HRK 25.4 million, of which HRK 18.2 million are grants from the European Union from the European Regional Development Fund. The project holder is the City of Split, the partners are the Split Tourist Board and the Split City Museum, while the Development Agency Split – RaST coordinated the successful preparation of the project application. The project includes the renovation of sites that were mostly not presented to the public – the Southeast Tower with part of the building at Lukačićeva 5 and access to the medieval procession on the east wall of Diocletian’s Palace and the renovation of the ground floor of the Museum of Split, which will soon be accessible to people with disabilities. 

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