The tender includes both the construction of the Arvo Pärt Music House and the renovation and extension of the city's St. Paul's Church. The deadline for submitting bids for the tender is July 20.

Mayor of Rakvere Triin Varek (Center) told ERR, that the timeframe for the construction of the Arvo Pärt Music House along with the reconstruction of St. Paul's Church will primarily depend on how many tenders are submitted and whether any objections are raised.

Varek added that, due to the changing economic situation, she was unable to predict how many tender applications would be received.

"Because the construction of the music house and reconstruction of the church is such a big project and we have not recently carried out a large-scale construction tender for a building, it is not possible to predict how many bids to expect," said Varek.

According to Varek, the completion of the building is important not only for Rakvere, but for Estonia as a whole, as it will become the first dedicated concert hall in Lääne-Viru County.

"In addition, the project will allow also the completion of St. Paul's Church, which used to be called the Freedom Church, and  was never quite finished," Varek said. "The building, which is of great value to the city, will be given a new lease of life."

According to Varek, the city hopes to complete the construction of the music house as well as the reconstruction of the church by 2025, the year when Arvo Pärt will celebrate his 90th birthday.

The conceptual design of the music house was created by architects Kristiina Aasvee, Kristiina Hussar and Anne Kose, who came together for the project under the name Stuudio KAH OÜ.

The Arvo Pärt Music House has been approved by the Riigikogu as a nationally important cultural building. The Cultural Endowment of Estonia is providing Rakvere with up to €21 million in investment support for the construction of the music house. This amount covers over 90 percent of the development costs.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!