Golden Boy requires major surgery
Government Services Minister Steve Ashton says the Golden Boy will need more than just a facelift. The statue, which sits on top of the Manitoba legislature's dome, will require more restoration work than was first thought.
Ashton says essentially, the inside of the 83-year-old statue is crumbling.
"You don't have to be a technological expert or an expert on antiquities to know that you'd better come up with a plan," said Ashton. "We're going to come up with a plan to keep the Golden Boy here for hundreds more years."
The five-ton, 17-foot statue was built around a central steel post, which extends from the chest of the statue down into the dome of the building. The post, and a support plate below the statue's foot, have suffered corrosion as a result of moisture accumulating inside the statue.
Technicians discovered the damage using a variety of tests, including gamma ray x-rays and endoscopy.
Statue may need to be removed
Ashton says the next step will be constructing a model of the boy in his current state and subjecting it to tests in a wind tunnel to see how much Manitoba weather the model statue can withstand.
The testing will determine if the statue can remain in place for repairs, or if it must be removed.
The tests will take about six weeks to complete, and a decision as to whether to remove the Golden Boy will be made by early fall.
Ashton says while the golden boy is ailing, he's confident the figure will be kept intact.
Other legislative repairs on time and on budget
Ashton says all other renovations involved in the $7 million project to restore and repair the the legislature are going according to schedule and are on budget. The work on the tower portion of the project is expected to be completed by October.
Because of the additional repairs required on the Golden Boy, the scaffolding on the east side of the tower will remain in place until 2002.
- RELATED LINK: Government of Manitoba: Legislative Building Renovations
- RELATED LINK: Government of Manitoba: The Golden Boy