The renovation of the Düsseldorf State Chancellery is expected to be completed within the first half of the year, according to the state government.
Currently, the building is still undergoing finishing touches, including work on the entrances, which are already in use, a spokesperson for the Rheinische Post (Friday edition) stated. Additionally, work is ongoing in the stairwells, which are nearing completion, and smaller construction projects in the ground and subterranean levels. The interior courtyards are also expected to undergo a facelift at a later date. The completion timeline refers to the work within and around the building, excluding exterior renovations.
The renovation project had faced repeated delays and had been marked by increasing cost overruns. Recently, there had been several raids in connection with corruption allegations regarding contracts. According to the state prosecutor’s office and the Landeskriminalamt, the damage caused by the corruption cases is estimated to be in the millions. On Tuesday morning, more than 40 search warrants were executed, including at the state-owned BLB construction company. The state parliament will hold a special meeting of the budget and finance committee on Friday to discuss the issue.
When asked about the current state of the costs and the estimated total costs, the spokesperson stated, “The financing of the renovation and modernization of the state house is carried out by three cost bearers: The BLB NRW is responsible for the maintenance measures, the State Chancellery for user-side optimizations and the Ministry of Home Affairs, Communal Affairs, Building and Digitalization for the security measures.”
The current state of the costs for the renovation of the state house is being re-evaluated. “At the moment, we are referring to the budget plans from the report of the state government to the state parliament from June 20, 2024.” At that time, the total cost of the renovation was estimated to be around 55 million euros.