Experts have figured out how to move the giant Rakaia Salmon statue for a $300,000 refurbishment, but its moving date is still to be confirmed.
Incidentally, a hook will be used to snag the 12m, 1.6 tonne salmon by crane and place it onto a truck to be transported.
Ashburton District Council community and open spaces manager Toni Durham said the plan is to remove the salmon before Christmas for a major renovation but the exact dates were being work out.
"There are still a few logistics to be sorted out," Durham said.
Original statue sculptor Phil Price, who had the successful tender for the renovation, was on site last week to inspect the salmon was ready for removal.
He had constructed the salmon with an internal fitting so it could be lifted with a hook and checked last Thursday that it was in working order.
Once the statue is hooked by crane, it will be cut off its steel support and then gently lowered onto a truck and taken to Price’s studio in Christchurch.
Durham said Price needed to build a special cradle for the fish to rest on while undergoing repairs, allowing it to rotate during the work.
"The size of the sculpture makes it fairly tricky to manoeuvre," Durham said.
"Once it's on the back of the truck, it will have a quick stop-off in Hornby for sandblasting before Price and his team begin the refurbishment at his studio.
"We're lucky to have the services of Ashburton Crane at a reduced rate to lift it off and on, and then Tarbotton Land & Civil have also offered to transport it without charge."
EA Networks had also provided a cherrypicker at a reduced rate for Price to undertake his inspection, she said.
Councillors had voted to spend up to $297,000 from the Reserves Contribution Reserve for the refurbishment at the final meeting of last term on October 1.
The vote was a 6-3 split, which didn’t include a vote from former mayor Neil Brown, who had voiced his support for the project.
Price’s tender of $215,000 was based on completing the refurbishment on site, but he had concerned about the quality of work being on site compared to working in the controlled environment of his studio.
At his workshop, the salmon will undergo repairs to its interior wooden skeleton and its fibreglass exterior.
It will then be carefully painted, scale by scale over six weeks, and finished with a clear UV seal for protection against the weather.
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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