Wrecking Balls 9.4.2013

This is the Children’s Pavillion that used to stand behind the Newcastle Regional Gallery.

It was demolished for various reasons, one of which was that it was in the way of the new addition and that work had to begin by a certain date otherwise funding would fall through.

As it turns out, funding is no longer needed because McMayor McLiberal and the unspeakables on Council tonight voted against developing the gallery.

Here’s a poll for your opinion: McCloy didn’t want to develop the gallery because

• a) real men don’t like art
• b) real men don’t know what art is
• c) real men think the State government spending $120 million on cutting a rail line sends a more responsible message than $7 million on making a neglected art gallery bigger
• d) he’s a ^&%#*?@

I hear McPigShooter* gagged the councillors by limiting the number of speakers on the issue, even though Cr Nelmes pointed out that the convention of the last council was for any number of people to speak.

I believe the GM gave a bizarre speech encouraging councillors to think about the message they would be sending by blah blah blah.

The online comments on an earlier Herald article give amazing figures about State government spending in Sydney: this is my favourite, from ‘Newy’:

‘So the $60bn a year organisation that is the NSW government can’t afford $7m for such an important community project as the Newcastle Art Gallery, which has the most significant collection of artworks in Australia outside of any capital city!

Oddly, the NSW government can find

• $1bn for the Opera House refurbishment,
• $600m for the Sydney Cricket Ground reconstruction,
• $1bn to $2bn and rising for Darling Harbour redevelopment (including demolition and reconstruction of the apparently now inadequate 12,000 seat Entertainment Centre and nearby Convention Centre) and
• $350m proposed for the NSW Art Gallery – just to name a few. But there is not a mere $7m in the kitty for Newcastle Art Gallery which has had to rely on community fund raising, the local council and a Federal grant but not a zac from the state. We know where NSW priorities lie.

If it isn’t within a few km of Sydney Town Hall it can whistle Dixie.’

And in bigger news, Margaret Thatcher died. This video is from 2008; a discussion about her funeral plans.

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* http://mccloygroup.com.au/sites/default/files/media-pdf/mccloyweekendarticlee.pdf see last page…

Tags: Newcastle regional Art Gallery, Thatcher