Budapest will build five new museums by 2018 at a total cost of 75 billion forints (EUR 240 million), Minister for Human Resources Zoltán Balog announced at a press conference on Monday. He said the design of the new museums will represent both state-of-the-art architecture and a respect for the Hungarian capital’s historical heritage.
Mr. Balog said the international tenders for the five buildings housing six institutions were published on February 28, adding that Budapest hasn’t seen building work on this scale in the past 100 years. The eleven-strong international jury is expected to publish the results of the tender in December.
The Minister added that the state has set aside 677 million forints (EUR 2.16 million) for the current phase of the project and will assure financing for the entire project even with reduced EU funding available during the next seven-year budgetary period.
László Baán, Commissioner for the so-called “Liget Project” said at the press conference that building the museums is only part of the whole project, which entails a complex overhaul and modernisation of the entire Liget area – Budapest City Park, with many attractions. He said the project will cost 150 billion forints (EUR 480 million) and will also include building a new circus, renewal of the entire green area and a partial reconstruction of the Transport Museum.
Mr. Baán said the completed project is expected to attract an additional one million tourists per year to Budapest, adding that it would not rely entirely on public funding and mentioning OTP Bank as one of the potential partners for funding one of the new museums.
(Ministry of Human Resources)
