The distinctive 19th century synagogue in the southern Polish town of Dabrowska Tarnowska will be reopened this spring as a culture center after a four-year restoration project. The restoration conserves the unique arcaded front.
Virtual Shtetl quotes Polish television as saying that the official opening will be in May 2012. The renovated synagogue will house a new Center for Meetings with Cultures as well as serve as the new premises of the Museum of Powiśle Dąbrowskie. The Museum to date has been housed in the local library. In addition, all the Judaica and other material from the synagogue that had been conserved and stored in the Jewish Remembrance Chamber located in the nearby house of Samuel Roth, the last Jew in the town, will be moved into the renovated synagogue.
The synagogue in Dąbrowa Tarnowska is one of the largest synagogues that have been preserved in Małopolskie Province and is considered to be a unique example of Chasidic architecture in Poland. Having been destroyed by the Nazis, for many years, it remained an eyesore that put off visitors and irritated the locals, who insisted that the synagogue either be rebuilt or torn down. Maintaining it in such a dilapidated state would be a shame. A few years ago, the Treasury handed the historical building over to the local government. The cost of rescuing the building was estimated at PLN 12 million, nine of which was paid with the European Union funds.