Walzel Centre

The building of the former Josef Walzel and Sons textile factory in Meziměstí is in excellent condition, and will celebrate its 135th anniversary in 2021. The building has seen a great many ups and downs, associated with the dramatic boom in the textile industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, followed by even more dramatic developments on the political stage. The collapse of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy after World War I meant the loss of its sales outlets, while the annexation of the Czech borderlands to the Great German Empire at the beginning of World War II deprived the Walzel factory of its sources of raw materials, after which it closed down. Textile production was not continued after the war, either, and the site became a dilapidated warehouse for many years, facing the threat of demolition at the end of the second millennium.

The building could only be saved with a new usage plan, which stemmed from the idea of creating a multi-purpose commercial and entertainment facility, the Walzel Centre. However, this called for the complete renovation and transformation of what was a purely industrial building into a state-of-the-art operation, not to mention one in a welcoming yet technically and logistically functional setting. One important aspect was the economic sustainability model, i.e. the creation of contents and services that would make the Walzel Centre a prosperous facility. All this was achieved with the investor's primary brief, which placed emphasis on preserving the building in its original shape and form and accentuating the interior and exterior character of the factory architecture typical of the early industrial age.

More than five years after the building was re-approved, it may be said that all the aforementioned parameters have been met. The refurbishment process was not without compromises, necessitated by the more stringent construction, safety, fire and hygiene standards, as well as the need for technological and communication solutions in line with the change in the building's purpose. These included the removal of the cast-iron columns that for decades had supported huge areas of the multi-storey building's ceilings. Modern vacuum-glazed windows replaced what was left of the simple traditional pane windows, but these were subtly imitated using external grilles that evoke the façade’s original character.

The refurbishment of the building is certainly worthy of praise, especially as far as the investor is concerned, given that, even though it was not a listed building, the site has been restored as faithfully as possible to its original state. The mass of the building as well as its basic appearance has been preserved intact on all sides, including the side facing the courtyard. Virtually all the windows have been retained in their original spacing, shape and size, as has the raw industrial decor of the unplastered brick in the arches above the windows and the sandstone sills. The pent roof has also retained its original look. And all this in a project that has made the building more user-friendly and also prolonged its lifetime, not to mention that it respects the tradition established when the Choceň - Meziměstí – Broumov railway line was constructed, the time when this then wholly extraneous foreign architectural typology entered the region, before being quickly and smoothly adopted and, from today's perspective, fully domesticated. On the contrary in fact, as any major change to its austere, economical and truly principled aesthetics would be seen as crass and unacceptable. However, the architect's tasteful and humble approach and accommodating attitude to the genius loci of the building as a whole involved no such alterations, and the site’s industrial character is maintained even in the colour scheme used for the façade and interiors, which enhances the overall impression while preserving a subtle yet elegant feel.

In many places, the building's diverse interiors feature a surprising number of original details and structural units, such as its restored sandstone staircases, ceiling beams, the remnants of former doorways with sandstone frames, wooden structures on the top floor, and so on. These and many other elements nicely liven up the visual aesthetics and help give the impression of being in a historically valuable and well-cared-for building. Overall, the transformation of the dilapidated factory into the multi-purpose Walzel Centre can be described as a hugely successful and exemplary project in many respects, one that has benefited not only the building itself and its users, but also the town of Meziměstí and the entire Broumov region, as the building now blends into its surroundings, forming the same homogeneous whole together with the other buildings of the former "Walzel Establishment" as it did during the company's golden age, and has become a true centre, a place that brings the town and the community together. Although the Walzel Centre’s modern-day role is new to this region, the building has become a very natural part of the area, and it is hard to imagine the place without it today. It is an exemplary revival of an industrial heritage site that is unparalleled in the wider region.

Petr Bergmann
Institut regionální paměti, zapsaný ústav