Spirit of Wigan lights up

published

10:02 Tuesday 26 September 2006

AFTER months of gloom, one of Wigan's sculptures is nally to be illuminated.

Lights on the 'Spirit of Wigan' are to be repaired following complaints that it has been in the dark
since the beginning of the year.

And council ocials admit the delay in xing the problem has been too long.

According to a council spokesman lights on the sculpture, on the Landgate roundabout in Bryn,
have not been working because water has been getting into the cabling.

He said: "This has been a very complicated technical problem.

"It has taken far too long to x, and we are sorry about that."

The striking 'Spirit of Wigan' is 10 metres high and rests atop a four-metre grass mound off junction
25 of the M6.

It was unveiled on July 15 and has remained a focal point of the borough's skyline.

The feature was designed by local artist Clare Bigger to represent the strength and optimism of the
borough's spirit depicted by a central archway with three gures.

Clare's proposal for an eye catching sculpture was chosen as part of the council's Transport
Corridors Programme in South Wigan and the Ince Economic Development Zone.

The scheme beneted from 80,000 in funding from the North West Development Agency and the
European Regional Development Fund and signicant sponsorship funding from Wigan-based
betting giant Totesport.

Due to recent weather conditions rainfall has been shortening the statue's lighting cables.

A council spokesman added: "Establishing why this was happening and who among the various
parties was responsible for sorting it has taken far longer than any of us would have liked, but
thankfully a way forward has now been agreed."

A contractor is being sent to the site of the statue to strip out various parts and verify what needs to
be replaced.

The council is hopeful that the lights will be working by the end of November.