The big square in the center of Ieper is an example of a moneywasting prestige project to enjoy the tourists. The price of the ugly kitsch fountain: 9 to 12 million Belgian Franks (at the exchange rates at the time of building (in de middle of the 1990's): 225 000 to 300 000 Euro). The only positive thing at these fountain: you can refresh yourself with it when it is hot weather. The same story with the ugly bus stop building. This big square is an example of corruption too: it was build by an architect who is a brother of the former mayor who decided to rebuild this big square. And it's an example of unoriginality too like the general plans were made by a big German architect office who made plans for hundreds of such sterile centers of European towns. Towns like Ieper, Brugge and Diksmuide look like each other.