Historic army barracks in Prague’s Karlín district, which the Czech government unsuccessfully tried to sell two years ago, will be turned into a cultural center with a theater, cinema, music club, cafe and gallery. The Ministry of Justice is eventually planning to rebuild the complex into a Hall of Justice, but the project will take about 10 years to prepare and secure financing. In the meantime, the government decided to lease the complex to Matěj Velek, who already operates a similar cultural center at the Žižkov freight train station in Prague 3. The Justice Ministry leased the army barracks to Velek on a three-year contract, with option to extend by an additional six years.
