The City of Brno has lost its battle with former tenants CL Equipment and Real Estate Leasing for CZK 15m in unpaid rent. The case stretches back to 1994 when the city rented the Klein palace to the French bank Credit Lyonnais for 90 years. As the building was in terrible condition at the time, it was agreed that the bank would carry out its reconstruction in return for not having to pay rent for 40 years. That would have ended in 2034, but two years ago, Brno accused the bank of investing just CZK 80m into the building. This meant that it had already used up its rent-free period and in the city’s interpretation, it would have “lost” CZK 225m if it had continued in the agreement. “The reconstruction was completed exceptionally successfully under strict oversight of monument protection experts and the economic conditions for the city were advantageous for the city and at the very least were standard,” said the tenant’s lawyer Jaroslav Brož.
