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Tour EspacitéFrom: La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland
The
Tour Espacité, or
Espacité Tower, is the
centerpiece of a downtown multi-use project on the Place Le Corbusier in La
Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
The building, designed by
architects Jacques Richter and Ignacio Dahl Rocha
of Lausanne, is 60 meters or 179 feet high and was completed in 1994. The Espacité Tower should be your
first stop on any visit to La Chaux-de-Fonds, if only because the
Tourist Office is on the ground floor. Pick up a map
and brochures about local attractions. After visiting the Tourist Office,
take the free lift to the 14th-floor observatory. (You'll also find a café where
you can get drinks or snacks at reasonable prices.) When you've had a chance to
orient yourself to the city from the viewing platform, you can ride the elevator
back to ground level or--better yet--take the glassed-in staircase, which offers
constantly changing perspectives on the walk down.
This photo shows a summer view of the rectilinear cityscape.
From 14 stories above ground, the Avenue Léopold-Robert
has a passing resemblance to New York's Park Avenue.
Here are two views of apartments from the Espacité multi-use development, which was begun in 1987 to
commemorate the 100th anniversary of Le Corbusier's birth.
About the author: Durant Imboden is a professional travel writer, book author, and editor who focuses on European cities and transportation. After 4-1/2 years of covering European travel topics for About.com, Durant and Cheryl Imboden co-founded Europe for Visitors in 2001. The site has earned "Best of the Web" honors from Forbes and The Washington Post. For more information, see About Europe for Visitors, press clippings, and reader testimonials. |
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