The information centre is moving to representative premises in the historic center of the city.
Address
Smetanovo Square 50, Litomyšl, Czech Republic
Client
Municipality of Litomyšl
Architectural design
Miroslav Pospíšil
Collaboration
Martin Karlík, Michal Vítek, Robert Randys
Design
03/2023 architectural study
Portfolio
you can see the whole study here
The existing information center at Smetanovo Square in Litomyšl is insufficient in terms of capacity for the center’s operations given the range of services and visitor numbers. The information center lacks space for both visitors and for displaying the range of products offered, including storage areas.
The town hall tower is the most prominent landmark of Smetanovo Square and a natural point of orientation. The ground-floor spaces of the town hall and courthouse can be seen as some of the most valuable areas on the square due to their location and historical significance. Therefore, placing the information center on its ground floor is a logical decision. It will ensure its dignified use and benefit to the public in the long term.
The area around the town hall tower is a traffic-calmed “residential zone”. It offers dispersal areas for groups of tourists away from the busy roads. In 2017, new tourist facilities were established in the shared courtyard of the former town hall and courthouse, including luggage storage and public toilets. The information center will complement the compact facilities for tourists and the city residents.
The information center is designed in three rooms on the ground floor of the historic town hall. These rooms connect to the arcade, and they are adjacent to each other. These rooms will offer visitors information services, display curated sales of souvenirs, as well as seating and light refreshments. Future access to the town hall tower is also considered, with the entrance from the new information center.
The entrance to the information center is accentuated by the existing Renaissance sandstone portal in the town hall arcade, leading visitors into the central area. The main information counter is placed on this entrance axis, from which passages lead to both side rooms of the information center. The floors in these spaces are currently at different heights so we proposed them to be unified to the level of the paving in the arcade. An important communication axis is the connection with the inner courtyard, which serves as an outdoor leisure space and links the information center with the tourist facilities and public toilets located on the opposite side of the inner courtyard. The restored visual axis connects the interior space of the room with the area under the tower, where there used to be a passage to Radniční Street.
The architectural design of the spaces respects their historical development. The original stone masonry and vaults are currently covered by modern plaster. In the new design we are going to reveal the original Renaissance-Gothic foundation. New floor constructions are proposed in colored exposed concrete.
In the courthouse section on Ropkova Street, the neoclassical character of the original building is preserved. New interior elements are clearly modern constructions designed mainly from thin metal panels. These naturally divide the historic rooms and create various opportunities for offering goods, storage, and the inclusion of functional elements necessary for the operation of the information center.
