Estimated cost of Tartu's downtown cultural center rises to €92 million
The design and construction of the Tartu's downtown cultural center "Siuru" is currently progressing according to schedule. Construction work is expected to start either at the end of next year or in early 2027, by which time the total cost will have risen to €92 million.
At the time when Tartu's downtown cultural center as placed on Estonia's list of nationally important objects, the cost of completing the project was estimated at €73.7 million. Now however, Siuru's manager Aavo Kokk says the budget is €92 million in accordance with expected prices in 2029.
"When the contract was signed between the Cultural Endowment and the City of Tartu, it was signed for €73 million on the condition that the increase in the price of building work during the time of construction would also be taken into account. In fact, the figure that has been in the budgets all along is €92 million," Kokk said.
According to Tartu Deputy Mayor Elo Kiivet, the projected cost of the center is recalculated annually to account for changes on the market.
"It is adjusted every year according to how prices have changed on the market – inflation essentially. So far, we have seen that it [the price index increase] could be somewhere around 25 percent compared to 2022. As we 've been following this pattern each year, it seems that this is where the forecast is heading. So that's where this other number has come from," Kiivet explained.
In 2025, the main activities involved in the project are related to detailed planning and design.
"These are the biggest things that are going on at the moment. And there will probably be some archaeological work, but at the moment, we don't know what the timetable or the cost of that will be," said Kiivet.
The Cultural Endowment of Tartu will fund two-thirds of the project, with the remaining third paid for by the City of Tartu.
It is difficult to say what the final cost of the construction will end up being, but according to Kokk, the aim is to stay within budget.
"We are still working on the principle of not increasing the price. That means that our team is checking the estimates all the time. All sorts of ideas come in from users saying we could do this or that. But if we were to go along with it, it's going to cost more. So, we're not doing that. We are making adjustments. We're not of the belief that it's going to cost more. It must not become more expensive," said Kokk.
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Editor: Michael Cole
