Brno prepares new tender for legendary "Muzejka" building after previous tenant's exit

The Brno city hall will once again put up for lease the premises of the former artisan bakery in Bergl Palace on Moravské náměstí, popularly known as "Muzejka." This was announced by Radka Loukotová, spokesperson for the city administration.

Use of the premises had long been hampered by a conflict with the previous tenant, the company Gattamelata. The city was engaged in three separate legal disputes with the firm, in one of which it sought to have the premises vacated. That dispute resolved itself when the tenant left voluntarily. However, the other two proceedings are still ongoing.

The company received notice of the lease termination back in May 2023. According to the city hall, the reasons included prolonged issues with rent and energy advance payments, as well as unauthorized interior alterations that disregarded the building's historical value. In response, the company described its eight years of operating in the city-owned space as "incredibly difficult" on Instagram, calling the city leadership "despotic and arrogant."

Now that the dispute over vacating the premises has concluded, the city hall is preparing the space for a new tender. According to Loukotová, the announcement seeking a new tenant is expected to be published as early as this summer. The lease terms will not require the space to be used specifically for gastronomy — any type of business will be able to move in.

Meanwhile, two legal disputes between Gattamelata and the city continue. In one of them, the company is demanding compensation from Brno for unjust enrichment — originally claiming 1.2 million crowns, though the court only partially upheld the claim, ordering the city to pay around 160,000 crowns. Both sides appealed the ruling, but the appellate court upheld the first-instance verdict.

In the second dispute, it is the city itself acting as plaintiff, seeking unpaid rent for the period up to the end of 2023. As Loukotová clarified, the district court in Třebíč has suspended these proceedings until the ruling in the first case becomes final, meaning there has been no progress on this matter for now.

Bergl Palace, also known as Bergler Villa or "Muzejka," was built in the 1860s in a Neo-Renaissance style with a Neo-Gothic façade, designed by Viennese architect Heinrich von Ferstel — the same architect behind the neighboring Red Church and several other buildings in Brno. The building earned the nickname "Muzejka" in the 1920s, when it belonged to the Agricultural Museum and housed the "Museum" café on its ground floor. The museum institution itself was dissolved in 1943, but the name stuck. Since 1964, the building has been protected by the state as an architectural monument.

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Around Prague, based on reporting by brnan.cz