TIME TO SAY GOODBYE TO THE‘BANGOR BOGEY’

A CONTROVERSIAL artwork dubbed ‘the Bangor Bogey’ is to be removed within the next few weeks.

The Caban will be moved as part of work to transform College Park in Bangor to make the area a more accessible, safe and friendly space.

Located on sloping ground in front of Bangor University’s main arts building, the College Park is a green space connecting the University and the city centre.

The Caban will be removed in the next few weeks and placed in storage with a view to finding a new home for it. In its place will be a small performance area and mini amphitheatre.

The artwork, designed and created by Dutch artist Joep Van Lieshout, is made from fibreglass and said to have been inspired by the tradition of a slate quarryman’s hut.

It attracted praise and criticism in equal measure when it was installed during the autumn of 2015.

Its removal has been welcomed by locals who have described it as a “real blot on the landscape,” and “the Bangor Bogey”. It has been suggested the artwork be destroyed rather than found a new home.

The project to update College Park follows a public consultation which identified various issues including accessibility, the lack of footpath links between upper and lower Bangor, dense vegetation, anti-social behaviour and safety.

With funding secured by Gwynedd Council in partnership with the University through the Welsh Government’s scheme ‘Transforming Towns,’ the work will commence later this month and be completed next year.

The first phase of the work will begin with thinning out some of the wooded area in the park.

University officials said this work will also increase visibility, creating better views through the park, and encourage growth of the plants on the ground, in particular blue bells. All felled wood will be recycled and reused in the park in various formats.

Cllr Gareth Thomas, Cabinet Member for Economic Development and Community in Gwynedd Council added: “Cyngor Gwynedd supports the College Park project and the positive impact it will have on the city centre. This investment positively contributes towards the regeneration of Bangor City Centre.”

Lars Wiegand, Director of Estates and Campus Services at Bangor University, said the land was given to the University by the city when the main university building was built in the late nineteenth century.