Since 2007, the former Capuchin Monastery in Opočno has lay unused and in the ownership of the Hradec Králové Region. The Department of Culture, Heritage Care and Tourism of the Hradec Králové Region has been actively trying to breathe new life into it since 2021, and in July and September of 2023, the Department carried out an opinion survey on a new use for this monastery complex, in cooperation with the organisation Nová síť and the Institute of Ethnology of the Faculty of Arts of Charles University.

The results of this survey were publicly presented on 24 September 2021 at the Kodym National House in Opočno. The full analysis is available to read on the Hradec Králové Region’s website. The most frequent responses were those requesting the opening of a Monastery Garden complex that would serve as an oasis of peace in the town centre, a community meeting place for all generations and an outdoor space for cultural events.

On the basis of these results, the Hradec Králové Region prepared the Community Garden of the Capuchin Monastery in Opočno project, the aim of which is to furnish this Monastery Garden with facilities for active leisure and relaxation, make it accessible to the public and enliven it with cultural events. For the implementation of this project, financial support from the 2014 – 2021 EEA Grants under the Culture programme’s Call for the Innovative Use of Movable and Immovable Cultural Heritage was obtained in 2022.

Project implementation was carried out in the period from May 2022 to December 2023. The project partner is the Norwegian non-profit organisation Fjellugla Kompetanse, which is contributing to the implementation of the programme’s educational activities. You can read more in the Project Content section.