May 12, 2008

Business owners favor fountain

Replacement sculpture by artist Bruce Beasley to cost $185K

By Banks Albach / Daily News Staff Writer

A plan to replace a fountain on Palo Alto's California Avenue with a sculpture has sparked opposition from several local business owners who prefer the status quo.

The city's Public Art Commission approved a $185,000 contract with Oakland-based artist Bruce Beasley in January and is slated to receive an update on the project Thursday. The city has been looking to either repair or replace the fountain for about five years, said former commissioner Paula Kirkeby. But the plumbing alone could cost between $150,000 and $200,000, possibly bringing the price tag to $400,000, she noted.

"The plumbing was so expensive," Kirkeby said. "So we decided to go ahead with the sculpture. (Beasley) gave us such a great price."

Beasley is also one of 20 artists commissioned to build a sculpture for the Beijing Olympics, Kirkeby said.

But business owners are arguing that the fountain is a better asset for their small shopping district on California Avenue. In a memo to the Palo Alto City Council, resident Ellen Wyman included 41 surveys of business owners and residents. About 80 percent said they would prefer the fountain remain in place.

Wyman said she uses the California Avenue tunnel about four to five times per week and frequently witnesses the benefits of the fountain, which was built in the 1970s.

"I see children with arms out trying to catch the water," she wrote in the memo. "I see people in wheelchairs sitting there smiling ... and mothers with strollers and children ... looking at it and talking about it. There is no basis for replacing the fountain."

According to some business owners, the $185,000 would be better spent fixing up California Avenue. Others said they see people enjoying the fountain everyday. One owner and a manager went so far as to describe the existing sculptures on the street as "bizarre" and "eyesores."

"I'd rather not have another statue with a creepy face on its chest standing a block away from my store," Scott Baker, assistant manager at California Paint Company, wrote in his survey.

Although the council is not scheduled to take any action on the sculpture contract, members are set to receive the memo and surveys tonight.

Council Member Yoriko Kishimoto said the fountain is in need of repair.

"The fountain is definitely decrepit," Kishimoto said. "There are problems, and it needs to be updated. This project has been on the books for years."

Meanwhile, the Public Art Commission is facing its own set of problems. Five of the seven seats are vacant, and the board cannot meet without a majority present, according to a city staff report. Kirkeby was the most recent to resign on April 9.

The council is set to interview and possibly select three candidates for the commission tonight. The applicants are Barbara Gunther, Eliot Tarlin and Edward Lee.



E-mail Banks Albach at balbach@dailynewsgroup.com.