Leaning Tower of Pisa to Be Shut for 3 Months
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PISA, Italy — The Leaning Tower of Pisa will be closed to tourists for three months from Jan. 7 to allow restoration, the city’s mayor said.
Mayor Giacomo Granchi decided Friday to close the 800-year-old tower, which sinks about 0.04 inches a year and is nearly 16.5 feet off the perpendicular, after experts said it was a threat to the public.
About 4 million people visit this city in western Italy every year, mainly to see the 14,000-ton bell tower. Nearly a million pay about $3 to climb the 294 steps to the top.
Public Works Minister Giovanni Prandini last September approved a recommendation that the white marble tower be closed to shore up its foundation, but Pisa officials maintained that nothing had changed to justify the closure.
The Italian government is expected to approve $110 million to finance restoration.
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