Podgórze Power Station

Podgórze boasted its own power plant five years prior to Kraków, which does no credit at all to the Royal Capital City. The municipal power plant in Podgórze was developed in 1899-1900 at ul. Nadwiślańska 4. The building, erected especially for that purpose, was constructed in the historicist style with matching interiors. It had a high smokestack that dominated the entire development, to this day one of the symbols of industrial Podgórze. Once the formerly independent town became part of Kraków, the power plant on the right bank of the river became redundant. Therefore, in 1926, the building was adapted as a lodging house and baths for the poor. Although the former base of the power plant was partially transformed, and its fittings destroyed, the functions of some of the halls are still visible, for instance in the machinery room. Moreover, the director’s villa nearby has maintained its original appearance since about 1910.

A state-of-the-art exhibition centre will start construction in summer 2009. This is to be linked to Cricoteka: the museum of the life and work of Tadeusz Kantor, which will be moved here in the future. The new building, assuming the futuristic form of a bay of a bridge, will be “cast over” the architecturally unchanged old power plant, which will provide a space for theatrical productions and concerts.