Moser Tower and Millennium Carillon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Moser Tower |
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| General information | |
| Address | 443 Aurora Ave, Naperville, IL 60540 |
| Town or city | Naperville, Illinois |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 41°46′12″N 88°09′24″W / 41.77004°N 88.15672°W |
| Construction started | 1997 |
| Construction stopped | 1999, 2007 |
| Topped-out | 1999 |
| Opened | June 2000 |
| Cost | $7.1 million |
| Owner | City of Naperville |
| Height | 160 ft |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Concrete |
| Lifts/elevators | 1 (installed in 2007) |
The Moser Tower is a tall building in Naperville, Illinois, United States. People often call it the "Bell Tower." It was built in 1999 to celebrate the start of the new millennium (the year 2000 and beyond) and the 21st century. The tower stands 160 feet (about 49 meters) tall. It holds 72 special bells called carillon bells. This carillon is one of the four biggest in the United States.
Building the Bell Tower
A group started raising money for the tower in 1997. The whole project cost about $7.1 million. This was three times more than they had planned to collect. Construction finished in 1999. To open the tower in the year 2000, they decided not to add glass around the bottom or install an elevator right away.
In 2007, the city of Naperville took over caring for the tower. They also finished the parts that were left undone, like installing the elevator. The original fundraising group stopped working. However, the city still had to pay about $5 million to finish the tower and cover its debts.
Tower Problems
In June 2017, people found some problems with the tower's structure. They saw cracks in the concrete and noticed that the steel supports were rusting. The tower was supposed to last for at least 100 years. But it turned out the concrete and steel were not holding up as expected.
After spending $50,000 on tests and checks, experts estimated it would cost $3 million to fix the tower. Or, it would cost $660,000 to tear it down.
In April 2018, no one knew if the tower would be fixed or taken down. Repairing it was very expensive. But many people argued that building it cost even more. They also felt the tower was an important symbol for the city of Naperville. In February 2020, everyone agreed to repair and keep the tower. The repairs cost $1.5 million.
Images for kids
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Moser Tower and Millennium Carillon under repair work in July 2021
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Moser Tower and Millennium Carillon at night.
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Moser Tower and Millennium Carillon at dusk.
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Moser Tower and Millennium Carillon from the paddleboat quarry.
