Gold Gold M1 sign and silver ferns artwork to be sold in shock twist
The controversial Gold Coast lights will be ripped out of the M1 soon but there are now bold plans to reinstall them in a surprise location.
Gold Coast
Don't miss out on the headlines from Gold Coast. Followed categories will be added to My News.
RESIDENTS want the $2.1 million infamous Yatala lights removed and the art installation placed on a hinterland hillface to become the Gold Coast’s own “Hollywood” style sign.
Councillor Ryan Bayldon-Lumsden surveyed his ratepayers after a shock vote by transport committee councillors on Tuesday to dispose of the city’s entry statement.
Councillors have previously been told the northern lights cost about $30,000 to maintain each year and the electricity bill totalled $5500. Embarrassingly, they spell out the words “GOLD COAST” but the words cannot be seen by passing motorists from the M1.
For the lights to be moved to a new location where people can actually make out what they say would cost $1.2-$1.4 million. The higher amount is due to an area requiring traffic management.
More than 100 residents have written on Cr Bayldon-Lumsden’s page, and while divided many support the lights being removed to where motorists and visitors can see them.
Their preference is to create a similar historic sign to America’s ‘Hollywood’ one which overlooks the film capital in Los Angeles.
“Relocating to some hillsides overlooking the city just like the Hollywood,” a resident posted.
Top spots listed included the hill fronts at Pacific Pines and Helensvale near the Gold Coast’s own production studios and theme parks.
Other suggestions included new overhead bridges on the M1, the western side of the Gold Coast Airport, the Broadwater Parklands and HOTA.
Cr Bayldon-Lumsden said he was “shocked” by the general business item on lights landing at the transport committee meeting. He quickly asked for public feedback.
“The community response on the lights has been quite evenly split between getting rid of them and relocating them,” he said.
“Either option works. I am just eager to see a final resolution on what has been a long standing embarrassment for the Gold Coast.”
Councillor William Owen-Jones at committee argued against commissioning yet another report into finding a suitable new location for the artwork, saying it was time to end “paralysis by analysis”.
Southport councillor Brooke Patterson was the sole dissenting vote. The fate of the lights will be decided by a vote of full council.
Yatala councillor Mark Hammel led the push to remove the lights, which he described as “a joke”
“This came off the back of disturbing footage I received from the Queensland Police Service about massive hoon meets near those lights,” he said.
“In one circumstance there was 300 vehicles at those lights with hooning occurring on front of it.
“This has always been a joke and since I’ve been elected I’ve thought it was a terrible decision by the previous council to install it.
“I was interested to see if there was another location (they could be moved to) but after what has occurred and when the QPS is asking for them to be turned off, we do not need a stronger signal to tell us to end this saga.”
Shock twist in future of controversial Gold Coast artworks
THE infamous Gold Coast sign on the M1 and the controversial New Zealand-style silver ferns will be sold in a shock twist in what is now a decade-long saga.
The Gold Coast City Council’s Transport and Infrastructure Committee voted to take steps to “divest and dispose” of the $411,000 ferns artwork instead of installing it in the Gold Coast Regional Botanical Gardens in Benowa.
The decision was made after an earlier uproar about needing to spend $500,000 of ratepayers’ money to install and maintain it, bringing the project’s overall cost to more than $1m.
The decision to sell the ferns was immediately followed by a unanimous vote to spend $250,0000 to remove the Yatala lights, a magnet for hoons, and sell them.
The lights, which cost $2.1 to build and install, were created for the 2018 Commonwealth Games and have long been the target of criticism because the words “Gold Coast” cannot be read by passing drivers.
The only clear location which it can be seen is a nearby field.
Robina councillor Hermann Vorster said the “absolutely massive decision” to dispose of the fern artwork would draw a line in the sand, which he described as “haunting” the city.
“What we have is a bunch of silver ferns which continue to haunt city officers in their sleep and this council because we cannot work out what to do with them and if the leaders of this city cannot work out where to put them, I’d say they don’t belong in this city,” he said.
“This was a big decision, an absolute massive decision because a lot of money has been spent, the city’s reputation has been put on the line with the arts community and I think this reflects the inevitable outcome of a long journey.
“We have made good faith attempts to find homes for this artwork and on every occasion we have failed.
“We are not talking about melting them down, they could find a home elsewhere but it probably won’t be in a public space here on the Gold Coast.”
Councillors argued that ratepayers would prefer the funds be spent on road upgrades rather than on the $1m price tag to install and maintain the art work.
Council governance and finance boss William Owen-Jones backed the idea and argued against commissioning yet another report into finding a suitable new location for the artwork, saying it was time to end “paralysis by analysis”.
Southport councillor Brooke Patterson was the sole dissenting vote.
The decision will go to a full council meeting.
It is the latest twist in a saga which began a decade ago when the council commissioned the ferns to be placed at the intersection of Surfers Paradise Boulevard and Elkhorn Ave Surfers Paradise.
The art was part of “landscaping enhancements” for Stage 1 of light rail.
The original site was ruled out due to the location of underground services.
Other key Surfers Paradise beach locations were investigated but rejected due to sea spray likely to cause rust, and testing which showed the amount of wind noise from each leaf.
Originally published as Gold Gold M1 sign and silver ferns artwork to be sold in shock twist
Massive blaze engulfs home on Gold Coast
Fire crews have battled a massive house fire on the Gold Coast that sent a large plume of black smoke into the air which was visible from a wide area.
Meet Aaron Love: GC500 rookie and Supercars’ youngest driver
He has Supercars veteran James Courtney to guide him - Aaron Love, a GC500 rookie and the competition’s youngest driver, opens up about the first time he got behind the wheel.