http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2007/11/25/pisas_got_nothing_on_this_leaning_lady?mode=PF

Boston.com 	
The Boston Globe
Pisa's got nothing on this leaning lady
German church on list of listing

By Craig Whitlock, Washington Post  |  November 25, 2007

BAD FRANKENHAUSEN, Germany - Compared with this town's 625-year-old
crooked church, the Leaning Tower of Pisa is a model of rectitude.

Ever since it was built out of stone in 1382, the Church of Our
Beloved Ladies by the Mountain in Bad Frankenhausen has been listing
gradually to the east.

Undermined by a porous geological foundation, the 184-foot-tall church
tower has been falling over, sometimes as much as an inch or two a
year. Townspeople have been accustomed to its lopsided shadow for
centuries and, until recently, the church attracted little outside
attention.

Two years ago, however, someone got out a measuring tape. Over time,
villagers discovered, the tip of the spire had toppled more than 14
feet from where it was supposed to be, outleaning Pisa's more famous
tower by about 6 inches.

A wave of civic pride quickly swept over Bad Frankenhausen, population
9,000. Burghers have been walking around with their chests puffed out
since.

Henry Hunger, the deputy mayor, said locals are used to the sight of
visitors gawking at the tower, their heads askew as if they can't
believe what they're seeing.

"You go up to them and explain, 'No, no, it really is crooked,' " he
said. "It's the image of the city. It's always been there, and it's
always been crooked. Plus, it just dominates the skyline."

The tower is perched on a hillside on the edge of town and looks like
it could keel over in a stiff breeze. Locals insist the structure is
sturdy and say no one has abandoned the row of tidy homes sitting
about 75 feet from the tower's base. At least not yet.

Engineers have noticed that the speed with which the tower is falling
has picked up recently, with the spire now moving 2.4 inches a
year. At that rate, it could reach a tipping point in the next decade
or so, though nobody knows for sure.

As a result, local and state government officials have agreed to spend
$1.5 million to try to stabilize the tower. Contractors started work
over the summer and have wrapped the tower with temporary anchors and
cables.

The ground under the church is rife with deep cracks and
fissures. Engineers decided the only way to save the leaning tower
would be to reinstall it on a flexible base. Plans are to straighten
it slightly - about 2 feet - and see what happens.

Engineers expect the tower to keep falling a couple of inches each
year, even after the repair job. They predict that it will have to be
fixed every 10 years or so.

The tower has been closed since 1984, but city officials hope to
reopen it next year after the stabilization project is
completed. Their aim is to lure tourists to take in the off-balance
views of the surrounding landscape.  © Copyright 2007 The New York
Times Company