Dozens of people cautiously gathered in downtown Omonia on Thursday night for the unveiling of its new fountain by Athens Mayor Kostas Bakoyannis, who launched a revamp of the cheerless square shortly after taking over at the municipal authority last year.

Coming as Greece starts to lift lockdown restrictions imposed in March to contain the spread of the coronavirus, the unveiling of the new square was welcomed by residents of the capital, who stopped their cars and motorcycles to watch the fountain being switched on.

In a speech at the unveiling, Bakoyannis hailed the fountain’s innovative and ecologically friendly design, saying that it uses a fraction of the water used by conventional fountains and is also energy efficient.

Apart from improving the appearance of one of the more rundown parts of central Athens, the new square will also be “an oasis of cool,” added, saying that it will help lower the temperature in its vicinity and filter pollution from the air.

This article was previously published at ekathimerini.com.