2023-09-22 13:00:19
The Salzburg Festival officially received the keys to the Commander’s Villa on Friday. The move of the large archive is now imminent.
It was years of back and forth regarding the future of the historic commandant’s villa: it had been empty since the municipal kindergarten moved out. Various institutions expressed their interest in the villa to the non-profit Salzburger Wohnbaugesellschaft (GSWB), which acquired the house in Riedenburg together with the barracks. A year ago, new tenants were finally found. After renovation work, the Salzburg Festival Fund can now move in with its archive.
“There were certain uses that we did not want to see given the prominence of the building,” reflects GSWB director Peter Rassaerts. There is great joy regarding the new tenants, which is why no effort was spared: GSWB completely renovated the 500 square meter building over the course of seven months. Floors and some walls and ceilings were renovated. Among other things, the villa received new sanitary facilities, electrical installations and heating and is now barrier-free.
In addition to the renovation of the festival hall, the festival fund is starting its second future project with the commander’s villa. “It’s regarding two buildings that are open to the city all year round,” says commercial director Lukas Crepaz, who also sees the Riedenburg tenancy as a district development.
In addition to the publicly accessible festival archive, the villa will also house offices for employees. In addition, a study and reading room with an open library will be created in the winter garden. For this purpose, the festival fund is regarding to move around 1,000 boxes, says Margarethe Lasinger, head of dramaturgy, publications and the festival archive. The archive is expected to be fully set up by the end of the year – which will also mark the archive’s 70th anniversary. “The anniversary shows us that it is the right time for a new start,” says Crepaz.
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