Clover Moore’s ‘milk crate’ sculpture project set to be axed over crime fears

LORD Mayor Clover Moore is unlikely to deliver a weird milk crate sculpture to an urban park — despite already spending more than $110,000 on it.

The Pavilion, a giant milk crate sculpture, was mooted for Belmore Park, near Central Station.

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PLANS for a giant $2.5 million plastic milk crate in Belmore Park have soured and Lord Mayor Clover Moore is now unlikely to deliver the weird sculpture, despite already spending more than $110,000 on it.

Sydney artist Hany Armanious’ sculpture was one of three planned works, costing ratepayers $9 million, unveiled by Ms Moore in 2014.

But the crate installation, called Pavilion, is set to be axed amid concern it would become a den for junkies and crooks.

Clover Moore with an artist’s impression of Cloud Arch, a 50 metre cloud shaped public art work that is to be built in George street. Picture: David Moir

City of Sydney also splurged $370,000 on private security in Belmore Park earlier this year after dozens of homeless people set up tents there.

The council, which has already paid Mr Armanious $80,000 and spent about another $30,000 on ­development costs, would not publicly admit the milk crate was going down the gurgler, saying its timing was tied to light rail construction linked to Belmore Park.

But Transport for NSW said it had no intention of using Belmore Park and council had “been aware of this for more than six months”.

Cartoon: Warren

Councillors were briefed this week that the crate was being reviewed and sources close to Town Hall confirmed the sculpture is being axed.

“Less than three months from the election, Lord Mayor Clover Moore has broken her first election commitment, quietly revealing she has canned the crate,” Labor councillor Linda Scott said.

Liberal Christine Forster said ratepayers deserve an explanation: “It was ill conceived from the start.”

The sculpture was always the most controversial of Ms Moore’s three major artworks, initially ­described as “an exact replica of a generic milk crate that has been scaled up to create a grandiose pavilion”.

Development of the other two, Junya Ishi-gami’s $3.5 million Cloud Arch and Tracy Emin’s $2.1 million Distance of Your Heart, is proceeding, albeit more slowly than expected.

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