Prefect's House, Tarcal

            In Tarcal village at the late 18th century, many important buildings of the crown kingdom were built. One of these is the so-called prefect's house. Its designer, like several buildings in Tarcal, was master builder Johann Jung. The administrator of the royal lands, the prefect of the crown kingdom, lived and worked in this house. The old plans also included the prison in the yard, but it has already been demolished. The crown later allowed the use of the building, which operated as a reformed school and then as a primary school until the 1870s, after which a paper workshop and apartments were placed in it.

          According to the plan of the time, a single-tract building was built with a wooden porch design, with an ornamental gable wall on the street facade. The building was built in several phases, and over the years it underwent several transformations: interior modifications, partition walls, plastic wall coverings and PVC floors were made, facade doors and windows were replaced. The windows have already been replaced everywhere, partly with three-part, wide windows, contrary to the original appearance, partly with new windows of traditional proportions. At the start of the renovation, the main building wing was structurally good, technically medium-poor, the courtyard rear wing was structurally and technically in very poor condition.

         The building stands on a side boundary, with an economic outbuilding (probably a barn) installed perpendicular to the side boundary at the end. The building follows the slope of the site not only with a level shift (stairs), but also partly with the sloping porch floor. On the side of the main mass of the building, there is a wooden porch that runs throughout, the interior rooms of the building are lined up opening into each other, possibly with subsequent interior modifications.

               The very dilapidated building was bought by the Municipality of Tarcal village to turn it into an apartment house. The planned function – independent living units accessible from the porch – made it possible for the building to be renovated with minimal alterations, to save the building with as little destruction as possible – almost at the last moment. The number of apartments created is 6, and the number of planned hotel guests is 22. became. We tried to install the necessary new washrooms on the side wall facing the plot boundary. A communal room with a kitchen, a washroom and a covered open terrace has been created in the backyard annex. The actual new addition was only the new covered terrace and the related side porch, the addition is indicated by the different use of materials – the visible brick structure. In addition, the task was only to reconstruct the original floor plan.

               During the renovation, we restored the building's original window division, and installed traditional connected sash windows and inward- and outward-opening sash windows. During the construction, two old stone fireplaces were discovered, and in several rooms, the original wooden powder floor was also found behind the plastered ceiling. In the vaulted space with an open chimney, we built a bathroom with a unique appearance.

               The roof sheathing was made with old ceramic tiles, the floors of the porches were covered with old attic bricks. Where possible, we kept the original wooden structure and decking, a complete slab and roof replacement was only necessary in the backyard wing, where a new slab and roof structure were made. Some of the interior and exterior doors were saved, they are valuable treasures of the renovated building.     

               The Prefect's House is a very important and valuable locally protected monument building in Tarcal village and Tokaj region, whose rescue and authentic, authentic renovation can be a source of pride for the locals and a tempting attraction for visiting tourists.