DOI 10.60531/INSIGHTOUT.2024.2.10| DENK: LIGHTS AND SHADOWS_ INSIGHTOUT 2(2024) 74ConclusionThis article has attempted to show the circumstancesof the building of modern urban infrastructure from1918 to 1938 using the example of the small town ofNové Město na Moravě. During this period, electionswere held on the basis of equal and secret voting.For the first time, women could participate fully inelections. It has been observed here that women didnot take full advantage of this right and of the totalnumber of councillors elected in this period(one hundred persons), only four of them were women. Moreover, they were not very active and did not havemuch influence on the running of the town.on had access to the infrastructure. In this regard,it may prove fruitful for future research to explorethe introduction of electricity, which at the beginningonly the more affluent citizens could afford.A difficult task faced by the municipal council was themanagement of municipal finances. Throughout theperiod under review, Nové Město struggled with highdebt and a growing municipal budget deficit. Thetown tried to address the poor economic situationby imposing high surcharges on direct taxes(andsometimes also on the house tax). The surcharges,which in some years exceeded 400%, were a heavyburden on the local population and hampered thetown’s economic growth.Moreover, the town’s indebtedness was deepeningdue to the necessity to invest in essential municipalprojects. One of the most important was solving theunsustainable sanitary situation in the town, whichinvolved in particular the construction of a watersupply and sewerage system.Although the implementation of these projects camevery late, they benefited all the residents of the town,regardless of gender. In the case of small towns suchas Nové Město na Moravě, it is rather difficult to lookfor a gender aspect. The composition of the councilwas largely male, but all segments of the populati-
