THE WHIM AN ARCHITECT THAT CHANGED THE PANORAMA OF THE CITY.

It was the 50s, television was already revolutionizing humanity in all its facets, in the city of Stuttgart for its mountainous topography in the middle of hills had a great difficulty to perceive radio signals so it was necessary to find a solution. The plan determined that the only way to solve the problem was the construction of a signal repeater at the highest point in the city. For the time there was no other way but to develop a metal structure with enough height to achieve the necessary coverage.
It was when the architect Fritz Leonhardt, who lived in Sillenbuch, resisted polluting the beautiful view of the mountains from his window with a simple and bad looking structure. With the experience that existed in the construction of bridges with reinforced concrete, he had the idea of ​​designing a structure never before seen in the world.
Fernsehentum Stuttgart tv tower
Stuttgart Fernsehentum
The design of the tower was quite fearful and pretentious, an idea that knew that it would revolutionize architecture but never thought up to what level. The design of 214 meters high with a base of more than 10 meters in diameter and a weight of 30 thousand tons was rejected outright, not only because of the high cost around the 4 million German Francs of that time, that is equivalent to an approximate of 2 million Euros at present, if not also for the uncertainty in the construction with the machinery and labor of the time as well as if finally the structure would be totally safe for the suitable use. The rejection of the city was resounding without being responsible for the project, but it was the SWR television station that took the risk and decided to invest and finance the project. It was then that construction began in June 1954, and finally by February 1956, when the project was completed, the imposing structure was already one of the tallest buildings in the world. In a matter of a year the impressive tower had already had more than 1 million visitors, and in a matter of 5 years the structure had already paid for all the investment.

​Its cabin has 4 floors, the first was for technical services of radio and television, two restaurants and a kitchen, in the upper part the terrace of two levels where its visitors can enjoy the best panoramic view not only of the city but also of the entire region miles away. It is said that the Tower can be seen on clear days from the Swabian Alps 60 kilometers away.
The Tower undoubtedly since its construction became one of the most representative buildings of the city of Stuttgart, the design style has been the inspiration in multiple cities around the world even for example in the city of Johanesburg in South Africa. I reply exactly the same design.

There are different data and curious facts recorded since its construction, from disturbing acts such as suicides of more than one visitor, reason why in 1958 its terrace was secured with a metal net, as well as visits of important characters for example of the Queen Elizabeth in 1965, when more than half a million people crowded around to greet the queen. In the year of 1999 Billy Weber takes the administration of the restaurant that obtained his first michelin star.

​Despite the fact that there was a fire in 1968, it was not until 2013 that, after more than 27 million visitors, the Tower was closed due to the lack of legal requirements regarding fire safety, despite the fact that elevator only needs 36 seconds to go up and down, the lack of evacuation route in case of fire was strongly criticized by the authorities. For what was three years later in 2016, after necessary adjustments, the tower was again open to the public with another concept. At present in its cabin it only has a cafeteria, the restaurant and kitchen are finally down next to it. The Tower is visited by national and international tourists every day, offers different tours within it and likewise social events both private and public scheduled during the year, a recommended tour is during the winters to see the sun come out very early in the morning.

What to do in Stuttgat..

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the history of the AlteSchloss
What to do in Stuttgart  two days visit
The Maultasche, Suaba gastronomy of great tradition and delicious flavor.
Best views of the city
5 Public places, parks or squares with the best view of the city
A weekend at the Bodensee
Visit the Ludwigsburg palace.

How to book a city tour?

Official tours are available at the Tourist Information office, you can find it on the Konig Strasse immediately after leaving the central train station or at the airport. You can get in touch directly on their website http://www.stuttgart-tourismus.de