Vehicle damages outdoor sculpture at gateway to city

A vehicle smashed into the sculpture at the entry to the City of Belleville, possibly sometime Wednesday, Oct. 7, when it was raining, according to evidence. Belleville Police Chief Hal Berriman said evidence seems to show the vehicle was silver in color.
The bottom of the sculpture is dented, one of the “legs” is pushed off the cement pad, and the upper arms are askew. On Saturday, tire tracks could be seem coming from southbound Main Street onto the grass, hitting the sculpture, and veering back onto Main Street.
On Saturday a child found the sculpture’s sign knocked over in the grass and propped it up in front of the sculpture. The sculpture is called “Point Well Taken” and was created by Ric Leichliter of Sugar Grove, Ohio. If anyone wanted to buy it after its yearlong lease to the city, the cost was set at $12,000.
The sculpture is one of six leased by the Belleville Downtown Development Authority from the Midwest Sculpture Initiative. Cost for the year-long lease of the six sculptures was $9,354. They are due to be removed next May and the DDA is considering whether to get another batch of sculptures for 2016-17.
DDA Coordinator Carol Thompson said the Midwest Sculpture Initiative came out and repaired what they could, but the dent is still in place. She said both the MSI and the city have insurance.