VISTA — The City Council members cast their votes on Dec. 12 in a 4-1 decision to keep the Time Machine sculpture in its current downtown locale.
Artists Rick and Jaydon Sterling Randall created the metal piece, which was installed during the Alley Art Festival on Sept. 10, 2017, at the intersections of E. Broadway and S. Indiana Avenue.
The piece was approved for a 90-day timeline. City staff required direction from the council on whether the artwork should remain.
The vote allowed the piece to remain permanently unless the artists decided to sell or remove it altogether.
Imelda Huerta, management analyst with the recreation and community services department, explained that the City Council directed staff to acquire feedback from surrounding businesses and property owners in the proximity of the sculpture. The goal was to determine what to do with the Time Machine after 90days.
“Staff revisited the businesses and made contact in November and followed up with property owners,” Huerta said.
A total of 19 businesses and nine property owners provided feedback.
“Businesses approving to keep the Time Machine in the current location are 12,” Huerta said. “Property owners approving were six. Staff also received a letter of support keeping the Time Machine from the Vista Chamber of Commerce.”
Councilman Joe Green said that he was a fan of the Time Machine. He also encouraged residents to visit downtown and check out all the other public artwork installations.
He noted that on the public art proposal form no maintenance was required other than the annual application of WD-40.
“I have visited the Time Machine several times because I knew we were going to have this meeting,” Green said. “I found that it does require a little bit more maintenance than a little just WD-40 once a year.”
Green said there were lots of leaves and dirt in and around the sculpture. He requested that the Art Community check it regularly and wipe it down for these reasons.
“Make it to where somebody comes from out of town that they’ll want to sit inside that Time Machine because I’ve walked by it a couple of times and thought, ‘There’s no way I’m going to sit inside it just because of the dirt,’” he said. “My decision is that it remains there and that as a community we try to maintain it just a little better so that every time we walk by it, it’s a shining example of the art in our community.”
