On Thursday, 27 September the time had finally come. After only nine months of construction, the official opening of the health and office centre – GBZ for short – took place.
The 300 invited guests, made up of doctors, therapists, tenants and friends, arrived from 5 pm in front of the marquee next to the GBZ. In brilliant sunshine everyone was able to enjoy delicious finger food, a GBZ beer or an aperitif. Our guests of honour did not keep us waiting either: Deputy Governor Dr Stephan Pernkopf; Chamber of Commerce chairman Franz Eckl; the mayor of Melk, Patrick Strobl; Abbot Georg Wilfinger; former professional skier Hans Knauß; former professional footballer, ORF TV pundit and author Peter Hackmair; and professional marathon runner Christian Steinhammer. The Melk town band contributed to the guests’ high spirits with a musical opening.
Shortly after 6 pm the popular presenter Andy Marek, the well-known voice of SK Rapid, invited the guests into the tastefully decorated marquee. The autumnal, turquoise table decoration was a perfect match for the theme of the evening. All the guests found their seats, and so the official opening programme could begin. Andy Marek welcomed everyone and invited the client behind the project, Peter Gottwald, onto the stage. Peter Gottwald took the opportunity to say a few words introducing the project. “It’s funny, we had actually planned a motel. We wanted to demolish the old warehouse at Wiener Straße 99 and build a motel here. There were even plans for it. Fortunately we dropped the idea, because otherwise we would be changing bed linen today. The hall was demolished all the same, and today’s GBZ was built on the site”, said the client. After Peter Gottwald’s fine and revealing remarks, the presenter invited the architect Dipl.-Ing. Dietmar Haberl onto the stage as well, and he too spoke enthusiastically about the project.
Andy Marek interviewed our Deputy Governor Dr Stephan Pernkopf about the privately financed GBZ and its significance for Melk and the province of Lower Austria. Dr Pernkopf was impressed by the project and had nothing but praise for it.
Another exciting item was then on the programme. Hans Knauß, Peter Hackmair, Christian Steinhammer, Markus Trattner, Dr Michael Karner and mayor Patrick Strobl came together on stage for a panel discussion. Fittingly for the evening, the topic was “sport and health”. Our guests followed the discussion with great interest and were able to take some valuable tips home with them.
A dance performance by four young dancers left the guests amazed. The 13-year-old twin brothers and their dance partners cut a fine figure on the floor. From jive and rumba to cha-cha-cha, everything was there.
Franz Eckl, chairman of the Melk district office of the Chamber of Commerce, was also interviewed by Andy Marek about the GBZ. Mr Eckl gave an insight into what the construction of the GBZ means for the economy of Melk and what opportunities and advantages it brings for the district as a whole.
As is traditional, the new building of the health and office centre was blessed. The blessing was performed by the Catholic abbot Georg Wilfinger from Melk Abbey and the Protestant pastor László from the Melk-Scheibbs parish office. An emotional moment for the whole Gottwald family. The blessed cross of olive wood will adorn the entrance area of the GBZ.
To close the official part, Andy Marek brought the entire Gottwald family onto the stage, and everyone lent a hand in cutting the opening ribbon. At the end, the client Peter Gottwald took the opportunity to thank his partner Claudia, his father Rudolf, his mother Elfriede, his two brothers Jürgen and Bernd and his two sisters-in-law Eveline and Birgit for their support, with bouquets of flowers and giant bottles of beer.
With that the official part of the evening was over and the buffet was opened. The guests were able to enjoy a delicious and generous buffet with something for every taste. At the wine bar a number of fine drops were served and all the guests were able to enjoy the evening to the full. The News Orleans Dixieland band provided the musical programme with their lively interpretations. As a small thank you, a goody bag with GBZ beer, a pedometer and two Melker Kugeln chocolates was ready for every guest, and people were happy to take one.
All 16 doctors and therapists showed their new consulting rooms and were available for questions and tours. The doors were open and visitors got a great insight into the premises. At the open day on Saturday, 29 September, countless visitors also made their way to the GBZ and the electrical & telecoms store to explore the newly opened building inside.
It was a very successful opening celebration for the GBZ in Melk. We thank everyone who spent a great evening with us and made it something very special.
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