A statue commemorating the end of World War II will stay along Sarasota's Bayfront — but in a new location.
City commissioners voted 4 to 1 Monday to move the statue, Unconditional Surrender, away from planned road reconstruction to a park along Sarasota Bay.
The 26-foot-high statue was inspired by a famous photograph taken in New York's Times Square on V-J Day in 1945 of a World War II sailor bending over to kiss a woman. Some detractors have said that kiss was done without the woman's permission.
READ MORE: WUSF's Coverage Of Sarasota's 'Unconditional Surrender' Statue
Mayor Hagen Brody said the "statue belongs to the community," which he said has spoken.
"Art is supposed to stir emotions, it's supposed to pose questions and provoke discussion," he said, "which is exactly what we're doing here today. And if we moved this thing out of public view or in a more obscure location, I think we would lose that."
Only commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch disagreed, saying they should have listened to the city's Public Art Committee, which had recommended it be displayed at the Sahib Shriners site on Beneva Road.
"I don't think we should be going on what we like and what we feel," she said. "I think we should also be considering what our arts experts have recommended to us."
The 25-foot statue has to be moved temporarily due to construction of the US 41-Gulfstream Avenue roundabout next year. The work is scheduled to begin in January and is expected to take about 18 months to complete.
