OTE Tower is a 76-metre-tall tower located in the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Center in central Thessaloniki, Greece. The tower opened in 1970 and was renovated in 2005.

The tower was designed by Greek architect Alexandros Anastasiadis and was completed in 1968, with the first black and white broadcasts on a Greek television network taking place from the tower in 1971. The tower was also used in the 1970s to support the antennas of an experimental VHF analogue mobile telephone network. Today it is used by the Cosmote cellular mobile telephone network.

The tower today, other than its status as a modern monument of the city and its use by Cosmote, opens up for events and exhibitions during the Thessaloniki International Fair, while the Skyline Café-Bar, a revolving restaurant operates year-round on the top floor.

History

Design and construction

The OTE Tower was designed by the architect Alexandros Anastasiadis in 1968, and its construction was completed in two phases.

First phase: Design, site selection and first floor

In the first phase (from 1966 to 1969) the general architectural and static stability study took place. Following extensive research, HELEXPO selected a 435 square meter area next to the TIF South Gate for the tower -initial studies designated it as a single floor technology demonstration pavilion- to be built. During this stage, engineer A. Aggelidis prepared the first draft of the plans, which were approved immediately and Apostolos Alexandropoulos secured the building contract in the TIF contest. Within the year the foundations were laid and the basement, floor level and first floor were also constructed for the yet unfinished 8.4-meter tall tower to serve as the OTE pavilion in the 34th Thessaloniki International Fair in September 1969.

Second phase: Tower completion and opening

In the second phase (from March to August 1970) the second, third, main observatory (4th) and fifth floors were constructed and the antenna mast was erected. The tower was formerly opened to the public for the first time in its current form in the 35th TIF in September 1970, featuring a state of the art rotating observatory platform designed and built by the Rohr company, which allowed tourists to admire a panoramic view of the city while seated. as well as foreign films set in Thessaloniki such as the 2022 production of The Bricklayer.

Ownership

The OTE tower is owned by TIF-HELEXPO,

Architecture and design

The OTE tower is a mix of modernist and futuristic architectures. It is designed around a main spire containing the elevators and emergency staircase. Surrounding this structure are several large discs of varying diameter which include the tower's usable spaces:

  • The first floor: a small cylindrical chamber used in the past as an office and conference room
  • The second floor: a two story high cylindrical structure with the emergency staircase looping around its edges, used in the past as an art gallery
  • The third floor: cylindrical chamber used as a recording studio
  • The fourth floor: main observatory level, houses the Skyline revolving restaurant
  • The fifth floor: a small barrel shaped space, used in the past as a live broadcasting station

In between the floors are small balconies which provide fire escape routes for the emergency staircase. These are only accessible from the main entrance (off limits for the public since the 2005 renovation), except for the one between the third and fourth floors which is also accessible through the Skyline restaurant.

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File:Thessaloniki YMCA and cloudy sunset.jpg|View from the tower

File:THESSALONIKI-ΑΠΟ ΨΗΛΑ - panoramio (1).jpg|The tower as seen from far away

File:Θεσσαλονίκη 2014 - panoramio (14).jpg|The OTE Tower as seen from the White Tower

</gallery>

References

  • http://www.ote.gr
  • http://www.skyline.bar