By Tate Papworth
Sunshine’s iconic Millennium Man statue is rapidly deteriorating as an ownership squabble threatens his future.
The once Zeus-like creation near the Village Cinema entrance now looks anything but as he slowly rots away, covered in graffiti and in a derelict state.
Village Cinemas commissioned the colossal ironman in 1997 and two years ago said it would work with Vicinity Centres – the group that owns and manages the Sunshine Marketplace – to restore him.
Works have never eventuated.
Both Village Cinemas and Vicinity Centres this week refused to claim ownership of Millennium Man when contacted by Star Weekly.
Albion resident Dinesh Jayasuriya believes Millenium Man could become a tourist attraction and has led an online campaign to have the statue restored.
“He’s half serious, half a bit of a joke – he’s a cultural icon,” Mr Jayasuriya said.
“The Marketplace is at risk of becoming just another shopping mall, it needs a point of difference.”
Mr Jayasuriya said it was sad to see the landmark in its current state.
“When I first moved here I thought he was a bit of an eyesore, but he’s really grown on me. I think through the passage of time he’s become a tongue-in-cheek part of the community.”
The Marketplace is set for a major redevelopment, but Vicinity Centres has been tight-lipped on details.
Neither Vicinity nor Village would confirm if the statue would be included in redevelopment plans.
Mr Jayasuriya believes Millenium Man should be returned to the community as part of the Marketplace redevelopment.
“It could be dressed up at certain parts of the year like the Lunar Festival and really become a year-round attraction,” he said.
