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DOI 10.60531/INSIGHTOUT.2024.2.10| DENK: LIGHTS AND SHADOWS_ INSIGHTOUT 2(2024) 72 find that primitive wooden water pipes distributed drinking water here, but only in the centre of the town, and citizens living outside the town were still demanding its extension from the town authorities in the early 1890s. As for modern water supply pro­jects, they often collapsed due to a lack of funding. There were, of course, wells operating in the town, but the council often received complaints about their cleanliness. 13 The necessity of establishing a modern water supply system was discussed in Nové M ě sto immediately af­ter the establishment of the independent Czechoslo­vak Republic. However, it was not until the late 1920s that a significant shift from words to action took pla­ce. In 1928, for example, the water springs near the village of Studnice were explored. A chemical analy­sis was carried out and it was found that the springs contained soft and potable water that was suitable for drinking, cooking and washing. 14 At a meeting in December 1929, it was agreed that a general project for the construction of the water supply system would be commissioned. A professor of Czech engineering, Ing. Dr. Zavadil, 15 was cho­sen who then prepared a detailed project plan for the sum of CSK27,500. 16 This plan was sent to the district office in Nové M ě sto na Morav ě in July 1931, together with a request for permission to implement it. In October of that same year, the authority finally gave its approval for the implementation of the who­le project. The proposal estimates the cost of the project at CSK2,300,000. The town was finally to be supplied with drinking water through a pipeline made of modern steel pipes. 17 At its April 1933 meeting, the town council agreed to proceed with the necessary loans for its construc­tion. By this time, all the preparatory work had been completed and construction work could commence shortly after payment. In this connection, the mee­ting also revived the discussion on the sewerage sys­tem, but no further comments were made against the argument that a proper sewerage system requires a water supply system. The council then unanimously decided to apply for the relevant subsidies and a loan of CSK2,300,000 for the entire project. 18 At the same time, care was taken to ensure that the wa­ter pipeline project was profitable. For this reason, it was necessary to attract as many customers as possible from whom the appropriate water charges were to be collected. 19 At a meeting in July of that year, financial bids for ex­cavation work from various companies began to be discussed. On this occasion, however, a debate aro­se over the timing of the project. Some councillors began to recommend that the construction of the water pipeline should wait until a more favourable time, as the republic was grappling with the effects of the Great Depression and the extra costs of the project could put a heavy financial burden on the population. At the same time, it was proposed that residents should not connect to the water supply at all but still use their wells. Other councillors counte­red that the entire project would deprive the town of 13 Doláková, Obecní samospráva a ob č anské elity, 102(see n. 4). 14 Chronicle of New Town in Moravia(1919) 1922–1938 , 106. 15 SOkA Ž ď ár, AM Nové M ě sto, 217/210, Book of minutes of meetings of the municipal council 1924–1931 . Session of 19 December 1929. 16 SOkA Ž ď ár, AM Nové M ě sto,, 217/210, Book of minutes of meetings of the municipal council 1924–1931. Session of 25 July 1930. 17 SOkA Ž ď ár, AM Nové M ě sto, 789/385, Sanitary conditions 1884–1942: municipal water supply and sewerage. 18 SOkA Ž ď ár, AM Nové M ě sto, 218/211, Book of minutes of the meetings of the municipal council 1931–1933. Session of 18 April 1933. The subsidy consisted of various financial items provided by numerous institutions, such as funds from the Ministry of Social Welfare, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Provincial Committee. See SOkA Ž ď ár, AM Nové M ě sto, 789/385, Sanitary conditions 1884–1942: municipal water supply and sewerage. 19 SOkA Ž ď ár, AM Nové M ě sto, 789/385, Sanitary conditions 1884–1942: municipal water supply and sewerage.