Town Hall in Żywiec

The Town Hall stands in the northern frontage of the Market Square (Rynek) in Żywiec, at number 2, and still serves as an office: it houses the Town Office. The building is four-storey, brick, in an eclectic form from the late 19th century, and its origins go back to the house of the Kantorowski family. Right next to it stands the Co-Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, so both sites can easily be seen on one walk around the Market Square.

From a town house to a town hall

The first building on these plots was erected around 1620 as the town house of the furriers Maciej and Magdalena Kantorowski. Construction of the next version began in 1654 and was completed on 16 October 1706, when the building was handed over to the starosty. The designer was Tomasz Poncino, and the investor the Kantorowski family. Around 1868 the outbuilding was rebuilt.

Over the centuries the building housed various institutions: the hereditary vogt's office, the town authorities, the district court, the police and a jail. After the Second World War the Town Office operated in one part, and the court and prosecutor's office in the other.

Appearance

The façade has tall triple windows ending in semicircular arches, separated by iron colonnettes, and rosettes. This arrangement resembles 19th-century synagogues. The building was damaged in 1939 and rebuilt after a thorough renovation in 2007. The colour it was then painted arouses disputes among residents.

The building is listed in the heritage register (A-550 of 1988). In the neighbourhood, on the same Market Square, is also the Żywiec Town Museum, and a little further on stretches the Castle Park.

Practical information

• Address: Rynek 2, Żywiec.
• The building is an active office, so it is viewed from the outside; check the rules for entering on the town office website.
• It is best seen on a walk around the Market Square, together with the co-cathedral and the museum.