Hull City Council’s Planning Committee have given the go-ahead to removing the Banksy and Scott Street Bridge, before rebuilding a replica structure to host the famous artwork.
The work will be undertaken in two phases. Phase one will include the dismantling of Scott Street Bridge and attached Banksy. The Banksy will then be temporarily displayed in an agreed location for public viewing.
Phase two will see the improvement works, where a replica duplication of the bridge’s structure will be rebuilt, and the Banksy will be reinstated to its original position on the new bridge structure.
It is estimated that works will take a total of two years to complete.
Councillor Daren Hale, portfolio holder for economic investment and regeneration, said: “Now that we have secured the relevant planning permissions, we can get to work and preserve this unique piece of street art, and the historically significant Scott Street Bridge.
“It will be a complex operation, and we will have to engage with specialist companies to ensure this work is handled as sensitively as possible. We want to ensure that the context of the artwork and the history of the bridge are fully respected and acknowledged in the final scheme.”
The Banksy will be remounted following the works to Scott Street Bridge, taking its pivotal role in what has been a growing subculture of international street art across the city’s industrial estate, transforming it into a tourist attraction, and continuing Hull’s legacy as the UK City of Culture 2017.
Scott Street Bridge was closed to vehicles in 1995 and ceased to be a public highway in 2007. It has been raised permanently since then.
