Rome meets Vilnius at Forum Palace

Vilniusites will soon be able to enjoy their very own Roman forum. The largest entertainment complex in the Baltics will open in a few weeks on the right bank of the Neris, offering the city's residents an enormous new venue in which to spend their free time.

The mammoth Forum Palace, which has been under construction since August 1999 and was completed in December of last year, will offer almost 18,000 square meters of space that will be used for a variety of purposes.

The building, which consists of five stories, will house five separate entertainment venues: a sports club, a sports bar, a disco, an open-air restaurant and a VIP lounge.

"The idea came from ancient Rome," said Greta Vaitkute, public relations manager for Forum Palace.

"Romans had a place where they could come, meet each other and relax in a variety of ways," she said.

The Forum Palace, which will have its grand opening on Apil. 26, is majority controlled by the Lithuanian basketball star Sarunas Marciulionis. Together with his business partner Dmitrii Buriak and other investors, Marciulionis invested more than 68 million litas (19.7 million euros) in the project.

The building itself incorporates its unique location on the riverbank into the entertainment complex concept. Views of the Neris and of Vilnius Old Town are visible from all five of the entertainment venues, and the restaurant, which features a retractable roof, directly overlooks the river.

The sports club alone, which will open first among the other venues on March 24, consists of an 800-square-meter indoor facility, including three aerobics rooms, a swimming pool of original design, a sauna and a spa.

In addition, there will be a 700-square-meter outdoor area for jogging, organized games and sunbathing.

One of the forum's unique features will be the All Stars sports bar, the first of its kind in the Baltic states.

All Stars will have numerous television screens for viewing sporting events and places for up to 260 people.

Parking has moreover been designed on a grand scale. In addition to three large parking lots, the building contains two underground parking garages.

The concept of such a large complex comprising various opportunities for entertainment is unprecedented not only in the region, but in all of Europe and North America.

"During meetings with our American consultants, they said that they couldn't think of a single example of a place like Forum Palace," said Vaitkute.

"Because the idea is based on something people enjoyed in ancient times, Forum Palace will be something both new and old at the same time," she said."

For such a large-scale venture, the Forum Palace will have to attract a tremendous number of faithful clients, but organizers are confident that the novelty of the complex combined with quality, original services will provide the recipe for profit.

"We imagine that our clients will be middle-and upper-middle-class professionals," said Vaitkute. "Because there are so many different services we will be attractive to a wide range of people," she predicted.

The Forum Palace also plans to gain business from conferences and group meetings. The Galaxy night club is designed in the form of an amphitheater, which allows it to double as meeting space, which clients will be able to use in conjunction with the on-site business center.

Organizers envision Galaxy being booked for private groups on weekdays while operating as a night spot open to the public on weekends.

Whether as a new place to relax or simply as a colossal addition to the city's landscape, Forum Palace is sure to attract Vilniusites' attention beginning this spring.