The Alga Palace is located between the city road Piramida – Plumbum on the upper side and Šetalište XIII. Divizije on the lower side. It is the first extensive project by architect David Bunetta, who is responsible for a large part of the construction in Sušak. It was originally conceived as a simple four-story building, and was realized as a modern five-story building with a prominent central projection, details such as a circular window and access to the roof terrace. Alga’s laboratory was on the mezzanine. It had rooms for preparing, preparing and storing preparations and shipping shipments, arranged around a central skylight, a perfumery and offices located to the south. It is interesting that the Alga Laboratory had its own post office where orders for Alga’s products were prepared and sent around the world. A modern glazed staircase, which stands out from the rest of the building, leads to the upper floors with storage and living areas. Nine luxuriously furnished apartments could be rented at a price equal to the average salary at the time. The occupancy permit for the building at Prestolansljednikovo šetalište No. 3 was issued on June 5, 1937.
The JGL Pharmacy Museum, the Rijeka City Museum and the Sušak Citizens’ Club jointly initiated the installation of a memorial plaque at Rijeka’s Alga Palace, which was unveiled at a ceremony in Rijeka on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. The memorial plaque was placed in recognition of Dinko Budak and Vladimir Kezele, founders of the Alga Sušak Pharmaceutical and Cosmetic Laboratory, the business and production of Alga Sušak, and the work of architect David Bunetta. The gathering was addressed on behalf of the JGL Pharmacy Museum by Eva Usmiani Capobianco, President of the JGL Board of Directors, Museum Manager Marin Pintur, and on behalf of the Rijeka City Museum by Director Mladen Urem. The ceremony was also attended by Mayor Marko Filipović, representative of the Sušak Citizens’ Club Mirjana Marinić, and family members of the founder’s heirs Nino Radetić and Vladimir Kezele.
“The Alga Pharmaceutical and Cosmetic Laboratory was a modern pharmaceutical company headquartered in Sušak. The company marked the economic history of Rijeka and Sušak in the first half of the 20th century and employed more than 50 employees. The Alga Palace remains a symbol of the importance and business of the Alga Pharmaceutical and Cosmetic Laboratory Sušak today. We see the installation of this memorial plaque as the crowning achievement of our efforts to ensure that the story of Alga Sušak remains recorded, thereby fulfilling one of the missions of the JGL Museum of Pharmacy – active participation in the life of the local community” emphasized Marin Pintur, head of the JGL Pharmacy Museum, recalling that the initiative to permanently mark the Sušak Alga Palace, as the laboratory’s headquarters, comes after the exhibition and catalog launched by the Rijeka City Museum and the JGL Pharmacy Museum in 2023.
“This is another step by which the JGL Pharmacy Museum continues to fulfill its fundamental mission of affirming pharmacy and pharmacy in our region, that is, preserving, presenting and valuing the rich pharmaceutical heritage of Rijeka. In this way, we strive to preserve from oblivion the valuable successes and achievements of our people who remind us of our rich heritage, but also oblige us to preserve it and pass it on to future generations,” concluded Usmiani Capobianco.
