Steven N.
The Budapest City Council has announced a tender to redesign the rear parking lot behind the Mayor’s Office into a park, announced Mayor Gergely Karácsony at a press conference on Monday.
By renovating the unsightly courtyard behind City Hall into a green space, Karácsony said he would be fulfiling one of his election promises.
If all goes according to the city’s plans, reconstruction on the courtyard will begin in spring 2023 and be ready for dedication in the autumn of that year.
Before that time, the renovated Merlin Theater is expected to re-open in the autumn of 2022, which, according to Deputy Mayor Gábor Kerpel-Fronius, will serve flexible, mixed functions, such as community activities sponsored by City Hall, community assemblies, as well as cultural events.
The handover of the park will be preceded by the reconstruction of the currently crumbling facade of City Hall that overlooks Károly Boulevard, which Kerpel-Fronius states will cost the city 1.5 billion Ft (US $4.8 million). Offices, galleries, and cafes will be able to open in the autumn of 2023 beneath the renovated facade in smaller rooms on the ground floor of the building overlooking the future park.
In the meantime, the Budapest Gallery is expected to open on the Gerlóczy Street side of City Hall, for which a tender has already been announced.
[Telex]
