The City of Wollongong will make a bid to take over the famous Sculpture by the Sea from Bondi, if organisers do decide to ditch the Sydney suburb.
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A bidding war has begun for the world renowned event after disagreements between Waverly Council and the exhibition's founding director David Handley.
Mr Handley believes a concrete path to be installed around the perimeter of Marks Park on the headland south of Bondi Beach would ruin the art festival.
He said it would "no longer offer the pristine backdrop required" for the exhibition and signaled 2020 could be the last in Bondi.
Last year the exhibition drew around 450,000 visitors to the coastal walk between Bondi Beach and Tamarama, something which would be an asset for the Illawarra, according to Wollongong City Councillor Tania Brown.
"I think it's time for the next evolution of Sculpture by the Sea," Cr Brown said.
"At Bondi they had it very focused on a two kilometer track, and I think the community up there are tired of it.
"So perhaps we could spread it out - you could have things from Bald Hill all the way to Flagstaff Hill to Hill 60 - so the whole region can benefit and share the love throughout the region."
Mr Handley has called for expressions of interest from coastal councils in Sydney and around Australia to be considered as a new home for the event. Both Northern Beaches Council and Sutherland Shire Council have shown interest.
It's understood thousands of dollars would be needed to secure the outdoor exhibition, though Cr Brown said this wouldn't be a problem.
"[Destination Wollongong has] a major events committee and ... there maybe other stakeholders who are interested," she said.
"We need to make sure these guys are serious before we put any money on the table."
Destination Wollongong general manager Mark Sleigh said Mr Handley could be attempting to put pressure on Waverly Council to change their mind about their new path. Though he said conversations had already begun around moving the event south.
Mr Sleigh said as Wollongong already had "world class events" like the UCI Road World Cycling Championships and 3 Fest there was no reason the city couldn't host the sculptures.
"We've demonstrated a capacity to deliver world class sporting events ... wouldn't it be great to have another major cultural festival here in Wollongong," he said.
"It's anticipated it puts about $11 million into the Bondi economy and $38 million into the state economy it also has the eyes of the international sculpture world."