The Prague Water Management Company (PVS) continues to transform the historic premises of the Vinohrady Waterworks into the Hydropolis education centre. The aim of the project is to show the general public how crucial water management infrastructure is in the everyday life of the capital. In addition to the exhibition with water as its central theme, visitors will also find a water park, a lookout platform, a café and a congress hall in the Hydropolis area.
In mid–June, an inspection day was held here, attended, among others, by representatives of PVS and the City of Prague. Construction activity in the area is in full swing, and progress is evident at first glance even from the street, on several fronts:
Information centre: The shell construction between the exhibition and functional water tank is already finished. The workers prepared the openings for connecting the buildings and began to build the central dominant element: a concrete spiral staircase.
Operations building: Renovators are cleaning its historic façade, and the shell constructions of the reception, conference hall and its gastronomic facilities are completed. The use of the conference hall should not be limited to professional and educational events on sustainability topics only: according to plans, this space with a capacity of 160 seats will also be used for commercial purposes after the opening of Hydropolis.
Exposition water tank: After cleaning and insulating the roof, work continues on the side wall, which will be decorated with the Hydropolis inscription. Inside both chambers of the water tank, the old plaster is being shaken off, and the connecting tube from the operational building is being prepared.
In the near future, the application of new plaster in the water tank and the exhibition building, the installation of utilities and the repair of the façade of the historic tower will begin. With respect to the monument protection of the building, the reconstruction is being carried out in close cooperation with conservationists. They supervise the appearance of windows and doors or the material composition of the plaster. At the same time, the development team is finalising the technical and content documents for the future exhibition. It will be closely linked to educational programs for schools and will offer visitors a comprehensive experience. The actual assembly of the exhibition elements will begin immediately after the completion of the construction and technical modifications.
Despite a slight delay in construction works, it is expected that the installation of the exhibition will start at the end of this year. The grand opening of Hydropolis for the public is scheduled for autumn 2027. The first half of next year will be an extremely demanding challenge for the project, when it will be necessary to coordinate the completion of the reconstruction of the buildings, the installation of exhibitions and at the same time the commissioning of a functional water tank designed to be connected to the Prague drinking water distribution system.
Learn more about the one-off venue here.
