Council pushes ahead with painting sale plans

Armidale Dumaresq Council is to press ahead with Supreme Court action to clear the way for the half sale of the painting Mossman's Bay. At the same time it is continuing to examine a proposal by the University of New England, which is offering to assume responsibility for the financially troubled New England Regional Art Museum which houses the painting. Mayor Peter Ducat says while council last night agreed not to defer the court action, it is still open to suggestions from the community to resolve the future of the museum and its iconic Hinton and Coventry art collections. "We've still the university proposal to examine, we've still got very concerned citizens, keen citizens, who want to look at other options," he said. "We're keen to look at those options and see if anyone can come forward with a viable option.

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