Solway Firth Partnership / Solway Coast AONB Conference, Friday 14 November 2014

Star of Caledonia Session with Jan Hogarth

Questions and Answers

  1. What is the primary function of the Star, an experience or a visitor attraction?
  2. Both, multipurpose
  3. The star will be seen form the motorway
  4. All services will be provided by local businesses, the creation of new businesses coming in to serve the star will not be encouraged
  1. From where can the star be seen?
  2. Balloon test was done to check where exactly the star can be seen from
  3. Seen from: service station, 2 miles west, north of Carlisle, west coast railway
  1. How does the Star relate to cultural and natural heritage and might the idea be too abstract?
  2. Nowadays science becomes more present in the media
  3. We are becoming more aware of what we don’t see
  4. In fact the star is a multiple metaphor – wave shape as concrete idea with multiple interpretations
  1. We live in a finite world. How does the Star show fragility?
  2. The Star is a generations project – sustainable
  3. The Star has different reasons to be
  4. Involving the entire community, making it their project
  1. What are the funding buffers?
  2. Creative Scotland funding
  3. Match funding has become a challenge because of the referendum
  4. The timing is important – wait for things to settle down?
  5. Possibility of attracting international funding
  6. The estimated total cost is £5 million
  7. Star is expected to bring in £16 million
  8. Challenges with local council
  1. What is planned in terms of interpretation and visitor information?
  2. Website
  3. Art-education programmes
  4. Art marketing
  5. On site: info panels
  1. How is the lighting for the Star set out to work?
  2. Solar panels
  3. Relationship to Dark Skies Park
  4. Council involvement: have agreed to look into and help with lighting
  1. The next arts project should be placed on Gatehouse
  1. What is the maintenance going to be like? What is the Star’s shelf-life?
  2. Ground maintained by grazing sheep from local farmers
  3. Money for maintenance brought in through merchandise, donations
  4. Potential for wedding photos
  1. What is the access to the site like?
  2. Parking at outlet and in Gretna town
  3. Visitors will have to walk through town to get to Star – support for local businesses
  1. The Star should be seen as a milestone. Include Star in saints & sinners trail (Eric Robson).