The fact that the city was able to purchase the models after all represents a first step in the renovation of the bridge. The new city council wants to honor its heritage and even appointed an alderman of Ostend Traditions.
“We have them now. That’s the most important thing. They can no longer disappear into a private collection. In the next step, we will look for an artist who can reconstruct the statues based on the models and place them on the bridge,” says Nico Geldhof, councilor of Ostend Traditions.
The city paid around 3,000 euros for the models, but it doesn’t stop there. Ostend also wants to make replicas of the bronze statues that stood on top of the pillars.