Project Title:
Tourist Valorisation of Notable Industrial Heritage Monuments of Rijeka
Project Goal:
The creation of a cultural and tourist destination that includes new cultural and tourist contents developed within notable industrial heritage monuments of Rijeka into a common and unique cultural and tourist product, thus contributing to tourist distinction and visits, as well as, sustainable development at local and regional levels.
Project duration: 1 June 2017 – 31 December 2022
Key activities:
Tourist Valorisation of Notable Industrial Heritage Monuments of Rijeka is a three-year project implemented by the City of Rijeka, in partnership with the University of Rijeka and the Rijeka Tourist Board. The programme is implemented through renovation and putting into operation two remarkable protected cultural monuments – motor vessel Galeb and the Sugar Refinery Palace, within the former industrial complex Rikard Benčić. It includes the creation of a new cultural and tourist route, as well as scientific, educational and promotional activities that promote the project and raise awareness of cultural heritage among the general public.
After the reconstruction and equipment, over the total surface area of 9,524.9 sq. m., the buildings will have multiple cultural and commercial purposes: for permanent and temporary exhibitions, creative workshops, a summer cinema, thematic conferences, accommodation capacities and a number of commercial services directly related to cultural heritage.
Partners:
- The City of Rijeka (project promoter)
- The Tourist Board of the city of Rijeka
- The University of Rijeka
Budget:
- Total project budget: HRK 81,339,442.05
- EU funding: HRK 68,891,606.18
Financed under:
Structural Funds – European Regional Development Fund – Operational Program “Competitiveness and Cohesion”
The Ship “Galeb”
Goal:
There is a plan to transform the ship Galeb into a ship / museum. The planned interventions include change of its intended use and putting it in function of a ship / museum as a department of the civic museum (80% of space dedicated to cultural purposes) and accompanying tourist contents (20% of space dedicated to cultural purposes).
Project description
The project envisages fitting the ship in the port of Rijeka with its rich contents into the cultural and artistic flows in the city (theatre performances, forums, performances, educational workshops, video projections and other contents to be implemented by cultural institutions in Rijeka). The inauguration of the ship as a new cultural and tourist content will encourage the opening of new jobs in the cultural sector.
Commercial spaces are envisaged on board – a hostel, a restaurant and a cafe that will increase the tourist attractiveness and usability of the refurbished cultural heritage and create new accommodation facilities, missing in the centre of Rijeka. This will directly contribute to the increase in the number of overnight stays and will extend the tourist season. It has been envisaged that the ship Galeb will be opened to visitors and guests 365 days a year.
Concept
Interventions on the reconstruction of the existing ship for cultural needs and other purposes are planned by retaining its external appearance, and introducing new contents with necessary interventions on board. In this way, the basic characteristics of the ship are retained, by using it, the ship is transformed to a new function. New security and technical systems are introduced that enable modern use and development of museum activities.
Project Purpose:
The concept of holding permanent and temporary exhibits on the Galeb has been drawn up with the aim of making the museum exhibit appealing to the widest group of visitors of all ages, and this will also revive this ship.
Project duration: 1 June 2017 – 31 December 2022
Investment value: HRK 38.543.243.81
Co-financed by EU funds: 85%
Investment value after tendering, VAT included: 58,572,773.64
Contractor: Dalmont, Kraljevica
The agreement on the performance of works was signed on 29 November 2019.
Sugar Refinery Palace
The Sugar Refinery Palace within the industrial complex Rikard Benčić is one of the buildings that until the 90ties of the last century formed the industrial complex that during history was the centre of industry in the western part of Rijeka. Since 1970, the Sugar Refinery Palace has been protected as cultural goods. To date, the City of Rijeka has invested around HRK 12 million in research and restauration lasting for several years of valuable artefacts of the Palace in cooperation with the Croatian Conservation Institute based on which guidelines were proposed for preparing project renewal documentation. As a result of extensive research a monograph was published titled “The Palace of the Sugar Refinery in Rijeka – Conservation and Restoration Research” and an interactive CD ROM was prepared.
The block of the former complex is located in the city centre, near the railway and bus stations, surrounded by other public buildings, but also business and residential premises. With the reconstruction and equipment, this baroque palace will become the HQ of the civic museum. It is the project titled “Tourist Valorisation of Notable Industrial Heritage Monuments of Rijeka Tourist”, for which the City was granted HRK 69 million under the European Regional Development Fund, within the Operational Program “Competitiveness and Cohesion 2014-2020.”
The programme “Tourist Valorisation of Notable Industrial Heritage Monuments of Rijeka Tourist“, includes the creation of a new cultural and tourist route, as well as scientific, educational and promotional activities that promote the project and raise awareness of cultural heritage.
The realisation of this project forms part of the Rijeka 2020 – European Capital of Culture.
Goal:
The reconstruction and equipment of the Sugar Refinery Palace will enable the use of cultural goods that are currently not in function. By renewing and creating new contents and by relocating the Rijeka Civic Museum in the newly refurbished building, the heritage of the former industrial complex Rikard Benčić in Rijeka will be preserved and available for future generations.
About the project:
The planned interventions relate to change of intended use and the performance of the necessary interventions in order to put into operation the above-mentioned premises for the needs of the new civic museum and accompanying tourist contents.
Concept
The interventions on the reconstruction of the existing space for the needs of gallery premises do not change the dimensions, external appearance and load-bearing structure of the building, but the new content, with as little intervention as possible, is placed in the space. In this way, the basic characteristics of the building are retained, which by using it, is transformed to a new function. New security and technical systems are introduced that enable modern use and development of museum activities.
For whom is the project intended?
In accordance with the planned activities and estimates made by museum experts, the number of visitors in the newly refurbished infrastructure will reach 67,750 visitors annually only for cultural purposes and programmes within the Palace. As regards the calculation of tourist indicators for a small part of commercial premises (cafe, travel agency) projections have not been made on the number of visitors, given that commercial premises will be used by private lessees, while the infrastructure manager, the City of Rijeka is directly responsible for implementing cultural contents in the operational life of the new infrastructure.