The City of Yarra will soon vote on whether to erect a statue of late INXS frontman Michael Hutchence.
According to online papers for the Tuesday May 28 meeting, the project is expected to cost $145,000. The statue was first proposed in 2018 by friends and representatives of Hutchence.
The report ultimately recommends the establishment of the statue, with the proposed location on a small strip of land in the Wangaratta Street and Stewart Street precinct. The site neighbours the Corner Hotel and a number of music businesses.
The City of Yarra, home to Richmond, Fitzroy, Abbotsford and Collingwood, was chosen as the potential location because of the suburb’s connection to the 1986 film Dogs in Space. Hutchence was the lead actor in the cult film, which was filmed in a Richmond house.
Prominent figures within the music scene such as Ian ‘Molly’ Meldrum, Music Victoria, Corner Hotel staff and Hutchence’s family have thrown their support behind the statue. The bill for the project wouldn’t be footed by the taxpayer, with the council assisting in raising funds to get the project over the line.
