Iconic blue-and-white tower in Ustka to be demolished. A vanishing relic of the Cold War coast

For decades, the tower served as a viewing platform for tourists. Yet few visitors realised that beneath its paint and panoramic decks lay the legacy of Poland’s Cold War coastal defences.

From navy observation post to tourist landmark

The original structure was built in the 1950s as part of the permanent artillery battery system (BAS) — a network of coastal defence installations established by the Polish Navy during the Cold War.

One such facility, the 9th permanent artillery battery in Lędowo, located just a few kilometres west of Ustka, was tasked with monitoring sea approaches and defending the harbour against amphibious landings.

Observation towers like the one in Ustka were fitted with optical rangefinders, communication lines and command posts for directing naval artillery fire. When the BAS units were decommissioned in the 1970s, many of their facilities fell into disuse or were transferred to civilian hands.

Civil reuse and gradual decline

Over time, the former observation post was converted into a public viewing tower and repainted in its now-iconic blue-and-white stripes. For several years it stood next to a small seafood restaurant known as the Tawerna Rybacka — now long gone.

Even after the restaurant’s closure, the tower remained a familiar sight on the western promenade, often featured in photographs and postcards. However, with each passing year, the structure deteriorated further and was eventually closed for safety reasons.

The demolition beginning on 22 October will last several weeks and include the removal of foundations and site cleanup. Its disappearance marks the end of a small but distinctive chapter in Ustka’s maritime landscape.

A disappearing trace of the Cold War

Although little in its modern form betrayed its military origins, the tower stood as one of the last visible remnants of the Cold War coastal observation system once operated by the Polish Navy. Its removal will erase not just a visual landmark, but also one of the few surviving symbols of a period when the Baltic coast was heavily fortified and militarised.

As the blue-and-white tower disappears from Ustka’s skyline this Wednesday, so too fades a modest yet meaningful reminder of the Cold War defences that once watched over Poland’s northern shore.