Historic Grand Hotel under renovation [PHOTOS, VISUALISATIONS]

Their continuation is scheduled for the end of September 2018 / the beginning of October 2018. The investment worth around 60 million PLN is to be completed by the end of 2020.

Only fragments of walls on the side of Piłsudskiego and Kołłątaja streets have remained of the former Grand Hotel. The entire middle of the building was dismantled. Originally in the 5-storey building, gable walls were to be dismantled down to the 3rd floor. For technical reasons and with the consent of the city conservator of monuments, this was done down to the 2nd floor.

‘During dismantling works, the walls were found to be in poor technical condition, which started the procedure for approval of the dismantling of the third level of the storey. In July 2018, a new façade wall protection design and excavation wall protection and façade wall reinforcement designs were prepared,’ says Piotr Wiak, Vice-President for Commercial Matters of the Management Board of Rafin Sp. z o.o.

August 2018, source: investor

This resulted in the suspension of building works for three months. The investor announces that they will be continued from the end of September 2018. These works will not have an impact on pedestrian and vehicular traffic at the intersection of Piłsudskiego and Kołłątaja streets.

‘The complexity of such projects, particularly at the stage of specialist earth and reinforcement works, requires very precise protection. Similar delays and problems were encountered by contractors during the construction of the new Main Railway Station. Grand Hotel is an even more demanding task because it is adjacent to other houses,’ adds Piotr Wiak.

Revitalisation of Grand Hotel

On 4th October 2017, it was announced that the revitalisation of Grand Hotel at ul. Piłsudskiego (closed since January 2000) had begun. Known as Hotel du Nord before the war, it was one of the most elegant buildings in Wroclaw. Known for revitalisation of Historic Hotels of Wroclaw, Rafin assures that the hotel will become the architectural showpiece of the city again.

‘As a result of over 2-year design works, Rafin could start building works in 2017 and plans to complete them at the end of 2020 or at the beginning of 2021. The hotel will be a 4-star building,’ stresses Piotr Wiak, Vice-President of Rafin – the company that owns Grand.

‘The project is unique. The historic front will be preserved, but the inside of the building will be completely redesigned. This may be a perfect approach to the revitalisation of buildings – referring to history, but thoroughly modern. The spirit of the old building will be detectable here,’ says Piotr Fokczyński, an architect of Wroclaw.

The investment will cost around 60 million PLN.

Renovation will not limit traffic at Kołłątaja and Piłsudskiego

The building site of Grand Hotel can be accessed by car from ul. Gwarna. For this purpose, Rafin demolished the house at no. 21, and the building at Gwarna 21 will be reconstructed when the construction of Grand Hotel is completed.

‘Thanks to this, vehicular and tram traffic at Kołłątaja and Piłsudskiego streets will proceed normally during building works near Grand,’ says Karol Pochybełko – President of the Management Board of Silkbau and General Contractor.

Grand – 172 rooms and 24 suites

The revitalised Grand Hotel will have 172 rooms: 148 in Grand Hotel and 24 suites in the hotel part at ul. Gwarna. A car park for hotel guests will be built under the hotel. On the roof of the building, an open SkyBar will be located. The building will contain conference rooms. The Grand Hotel revitalisation project has been prepared by the Wroclaw studio GREG architekci.

Grand Hotel at ul. Piłsudskiego, visualisation: investor

‘Architecture is our passion, so we successfully revitalise historic hotels: Piast and Europejski. Now the time has come for Grand Hotel – our biggest project, which we have prepared with utmost care,’ says Paweł Rojek, President of Rafin.

During the revitalisation, the pre-war tower of the building will be restored.

‘The reconstructed tower of Grand Hotel along with the tower of Piast Hotel will bring back the presentable gate to the city that existed here before the war and led to the Market Square,’ adds Piotr Wiak.

Grzegorz Górka, the owner of the Greg architekci studio and the main designer of the revitalisation of Grand Hotel, adds: ‘The implementation of the Grand Hotel project has been the biggest challenge in our career so far. With each successive stage, our respect for this building grew. This was certainly an obligation due to the importance of the place in which the hotel is located and its rich history.