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| The National Theater of Albania |
“The negotiating commission, in support of all the demands of the artist community for a modern theater that fulfills the necessary criteria for the professional and quality performance of theatrical performances, failed to reach an agreement with the private party. The financial model proposed by the private stakeholder for the construction of the new National Theater building and urban area development, but also the complexity of the project, which had to meet all the technical requirements required by the artists' representation on the commission, did not guarantee to build the Theatre in a timely manner and with modern infrastructure for a contemporary theater”, the Municipality announced in a statement.
The construction of a new theater, according to a project by renowned Danish architect Bjarke Ingels, was opposed by a section of the artist community, while the Government-chosen way raised many doubts. Parliament passed in 2018 a special law that recognized the right of a private company to build a new building with its own funds. In return, the company was allowed to build several multi-story buildings in the area around the heart of Tirana.
In the law drafted by Parliament, unlike an earlier variant specifying by name the Albanian construction company "FIELD", there was space for the race. But in fact, it was again only the "FIELD" that featured in the race which closed in the second half of September 2019.
The government had strongly backed the project, stating that the Public-Private Partnership formula was the only way to finance a costly project that could not afford. The cost of construction according to the Danish architect is over 30m euros. But today's City Hall statement states that "in the interest of building a modern building that meets all the technical conditions for the performance of the play, which serves the artistic community of the arts and the public, the Government and the Municipality of Tirana decided that the new building of the National Theater would be built by the state as a public investment." The Municipality pledges that work will begin within this year to carry out the same project for the new Theater building.