From 4 November, all city fountains in Lviv — both decorative and drinking — will be switched off for the winter period. The fountain equipment will be mothballed until the spring of next year, the Lviv City Council has reported.
District administrations, which are responsible for the fountains, will carry out the necessary conservation work over the next few days. This is done in advance, as the preparation of each facility takes a certain amount of time.
The decision to stop the fountains was taken due to falling outdoor temperatures. In sub-zero conditions, water in the nozzles and pipes can freeze and damage the equipment, so it is protected from the effects of frost.
This is a standard annual procedure required to protect the equipment, basins and pumping systems of the fountains from frost. It will ensure the uninterrupted operation of the fountains next spring, the Halytskyi District Administration noted.
All decorative fountains in Lviv are being put into conservation, including those on Svobody Avenue near the Opera House, on Halytska and Krynychna Squares (near the “Pidzamche” station), Dvirtseva Square (near the railway station), Koliyivshchyny Square, on Kopernyka Street (“Well with Lions” and “Volodii”), on Mytna Square, as well as in Stryiskyi Park — the “Ivasyk-Telesyk” fountain.
The city's drinking fountains will also be temporarily shut down. They are located, in particular, at 1 Rynok Square (near the City Hall), on Svobody Avenue (between the Röring flowerbed and the Taras Shevchenko monument and near the Opera House), in the “Na Valakh” square on Pidvalna Street, on Stepana Bandery Street near the Organ Hall, at 85 General T. Chuprynky Street, at the junction of Stepana Bandery and General T. Chuprynky Streets, on Ye. Malanyuka and Mytna Squares, at 175a Lychakivska Street, at the junction of T. Shevchenka and D. Bortnianskoho Streets, on Dvirtseva Square near the station, at 34 Vyhovskoho Street, as well as two new drinking fountains in Stryiskyi Park with separate bowls for people and animals.
At the same time, five historic fountains — four on Rynok Square and the fountain on Mariiska Square — have remained closed since the start of the full-scale invasion. Their operation is planned to be restored after Ukraine's victory.