Costs of fountain studied

There seems to be a buzz around town about the removal of the

fountain that used to sit near City Hall.

The fountain was removed when its spray splashing on the sidewalk

became a public safety concern.

Tom Askman was commissioned to create the piece in 1991 and he

installed it in 1992. The work, called “Synthetic Falls,” did not

function correctly from the beginning, said Sian Poeschl, city arts

coordinator.

“The arts commission asked [the artist] repeatedly through a lot

of written correspondence to rectify the faults,” Poeschl said.

The artist did not comply, and the fountain was removed, she said.

Now, an independent conservator has been hired to look into

repairing the artwork. The conservator will come up with an estimate

of what it will take to repair and maintain the art and present it to

the City Council with the Arts Commission’s recommendation.

When the fountain was removed, the city found that not only was

the exterior damaged, there was interior rust, Poeschl said.

The fountain is being stored on city property. The Arts Commission

on Monday will review the final draft of the Deaccession Policy,

which addresses removing public art. The Arts Commission will present

the policy to the City Council for approval in early 2003.

“However, at this time the artwork is being reviewed for repair,

rather than deaccession,” Poeschl said.

It will depend on the final costs. If the cost becomes

prohibitive, the commission will recommend that the fountain not be

put back.

“It is the primary responsibility of the city to preserve and

protect the collections of public art under its management for the

people of Laguna Beach,” Poeschl said.

-- Suzie Harrison