The replacement of the elevator for a month will close the dominant Town Hall Tower in Ostrava

Ostrava - The observation tower of the new town hall in Ostrava, which is one of the most famous landmarks in the city, will be closed for about a month in February. The reason is the necessary repair of the elevator, which has been malfunctioning for a long time, and it will undergo a complete replacement, Jakub Otto, head of the Ostrava Information Service branch that has one of its offices in the tower, said today to ČTK.

"The year 2017 will begin for us under the sign of sports. At the end of January, we are prepared for the influx of domestic and foreign figure skating fans who will come to Ostrava to watch the European Championship. After the championship on January 30, 2017, the observation tower will be closed to the public,” Otto explained. The sought-after tourist attraction could reopen to the public in March.

During the inaccessibility of the information center on the sixth floor of the new town hall, clients will be able to use the services of the Ostrava Information Service branches at Elektron, in Forum Nová Karolina, or at the Main Train Station, which are the closest to the observation tower.

"The only service that we will provide despite this outage will be guided city tours, which interested parties will be able to order from us even during this time," said Otto.

The highest town hall observation tower in the Czech Republic is part of the new town hall, which is the largest town hall in the country. The balcony of the tower, at a height of 72 meters, is open to the public as a lookout tower. The entire tower reaches a height of 85.6 meters. Every year, more than 40,000 visitors, nearly a quarter from abroad, enjoy the view of Ostrava and its surroundings from the tower.