Agreements were signed on financing for a HUF 7.2 billion conference and concert centre with a capacity to seat a thousand visitors, a HUF 5.5 billion library and knowledge centre that will merge all of the local university libraries, and HUF 2.5 billion for the first phase of a project that will revitalise the city's public spaces. European Union funding will account for HUF 5.25 billion of the conference centre budget, HUF 4.6 billion of the library project, and HUF 2.3 billion of the public spaces project.
Building permits have already been issued for all of the projects, and the process of selecting subcontractors is underway. Work is slated to begin in the spring of 2009. The concert hall and library projects are expected to be completed in 16 months.
A decision on the Zsolnay Cultural Quarter, the fourth big project in Pécs 2010 programme, will be made early in 2009.
Some HUF 45 billion has been budgeted for the 2010 programme, and HUF 36.4 billion of this amount will go toward investments.
Source: Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
