Michelko: Partial Reopening of Krasna Horka Castle Not Possible

Krasnohorske Podhradie, 22 January (TASR) – Partial opening of Krasna Horka Castle before fully completing its renovation does not appear to be realistic, TASR has learnt from Slovak National Party (SNS) MP and chair of the parliamentary culture and media committee Roman Michelko following an MPs' inquiry. According to the opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party, the renovation of the castle, which was severely damaged by fire on 10 March 2012, slowed down significantly after the Slovak National Museum (SNM) has withdrawn from the contract with the original contractor, while funding for further work remains unclear. Michelko said that during the inquiry, MPs were given answers to the most important questions concerning the renovation. "The new SNM general director, Vieroslava Bernatova, presented a clear project vision of how the renovation will proceed. The construction phase is planned to be taking place until the end of 2029, while the first exhibitions could be opened in the course of 2030," Michelko told TASR. The opposition PS party says the current state of the renovation work raises serious questions about funding, professional management, and realistic completion deadlines. "The SNM plans to secure funding for continuing the renovation, especially of the Upper Castle, from the 'Slovakia' operational programme, but this remains an uncertain source so far," said committee member Dana Kleinert (PS). PS also noted that the Culture Ministry is not seeing the renovation of the castle realistically, as the ministry recently mentioned the possibility of its partial reopening in the summer of 2026. Michelko doesn't think that the castle could be reopened before completing its renovation. "Due to the construction work, it will not be possible; there will be security measures, and exhibitions cannot be opened on a construction site," stated Michelko. With regard to SNM's withdrawal from the contract with the original contractor, Kleinert said that "to this day, it has not been convincingly explained whether this was the best move for the castle's renovation. What is certain, however, is that it significantly slowed down the entire project and caused further chaos". Michelko noted that the SNM won all legal disputes with the original company, so nothing stands in the way of launching a public tender for a new contractor. As regards funding, he stated that the current SNM leadership has a clear vision about the financing of the project, reportedly by combining sources from the European funds and the state budget. The Culture Ministry announced on Tuesday (20 January) that the cost of fully completing the renovation work currently stands at €16 million, but there are still problems with roofs in the lower and middle part of the castle. In this connection, a contract for drawing up a project, including author's supervision, has been signed with the Slovak University of Technology (STU). jrg