With its odd shape and remarkable stature it’s a structure which attracts visitors from miles around wanting to see it for themselves. The tower has been compared to many things including a hot air balloon or an onion as many people question what this odd Cardiff landmark is actually used for.
The structure’s tall stem and large sphere at the top has earned it many nicknames locally including The Lollipop, The Giant Golf Ball in the Sky, and The Onion. Built in the mid-1960’s, the tower was first used as a device to pump water across Cardiff in areas such as Canton, Fairwater, and Grangetown.
The water tower was once owned by Welsh Water but was sold in 1999. It is now owned by Cornerstone Telecommunications Infrastructure Limited (CTIL) and is being used for telecommunications for Vodafone.
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Telecommunication equipment was installed on top of the structure around six months ago
(Image: WalesOnline/ Rob Browne)
Local resident Mark, who asked us not to use his surname, has lived in the area his whole life and grew up near the structure. The 58-year-old remembered how when he was young he and his brother climbed up the stairs on the inside of the tower – much to the disdain of their parents. For the latest Cardiff news sign up to our newsletter here.
The old water tower brings people from far and wide to visit Pentrebane, stopping in the street to see it. Mark said: “People come from miles to see it and I always have people asking me what it is.”
The onion-shaped structure is a stone’s through away from the houses in Firs Avenue
(Image: WalesOnline/ Rob Browne)
A resident living in Firs Avenue recalled being a young boy and watching the workers construct it. He said: “We would all sit on the driveway and watch the cranes go up on the tower. In those days we had nothing else to do really.”
Standing atop one of the highest points in Cardiff the structure is a few steps away from the homes in Firs Avenue in Pentrebane. A resident that was one of the first to move into the homes in the street is 90-year-old Ruth Postans who has lived there for more than 60 years.
It can be seen across parts of the city
(Image: WalesOnline/ Rob Browne)
As the tower is so tall maintenance workers would need to use a crane to get to the top of it. Ruth often came out and offered the people working on it a cups of tea.
She said: “Before the flats were built I could see the balloon out of my window. It has never been a problem – I forget it’s even there.”