The Joliet City Council voted 5-4 on Tuesday to spend $197,000 for the “Dome of Unity,” a proposed sculpture that provoked a controversy that some said was good.

“The lesson here is that strong reaction to art is a good sign,” Erick Deshaun Dorris told the council. “Safe, boring art is forgotten. Bold art endures.”

Dorris, a former chairman of the Joliet Arts Commission, was one of several speakers voicing support for the “Dome of Unity.”

Whether the sculpture is bold enough to endure only time will tell. But the vote means that the sculpture will at least get built and put into the new City Square under construction downtown.

The city wants the “Dome of Unity” unveiled in its spot just across the street from the Rialto Square Theatre as part of the theater’s 100th anniversary celebration on May 16, 2026.

The plan appeared in trouble after social media critics bashed the “Dome of Unity” when the council first was to vote on it two weeks ago.

“The old saying is that if you want to get people riled up talk about politics or religion,” Mayor Terry D’Arcy said. “I guess we could add art to that.”

Despite the online criticism, only two people showed up at council meetings on Monday and Tuesday to suggest that the council consider something different,

“I’m not against it,” said Seth Norcross. “It’s just that the messaging is weird.”

Norcross and John Hertko suggested that the city put up a sculpture that reflects the Joliet motto as the “City of Champions.”

Nine other people, including Lockport Mayor Steven Streit, spoke in favor of the “Dome of Unity.”

Marge Cepon suggested critics’ comparison of the sculpture to a Wiffel ball could be turned to an advantage.

“It might become a term of endearment actually,” Cepon said.

Several people also spoke in favor of the “Dome of Unity” at the council workshop on Monday, when no one showed up to speak against it.

Voting for the “Dome of Unity” were D’Arcy, who cast the last vote breaking what was at that point a 4-4 tie, Cesar Cardenas, Suzanna Ibarra, Pat Mudron and Sherri Reardon.

Voting against it were Joe Clement, Larry Hug, Juan Moreno and Jan Quilllman.

Quillman said the city should spend the $197,000 on streets and especially sidewalks in need of repair.

“We need to take care of the infrastructure before we get into the art thing,” Quillman said.

The sculpture would be the last touch to the $9 million City Square project, which is part of a $20.1 million upgrade underway downtown.

Clement said he would have liked to see something more representative of Joliet traditions.

Cardenas suggested that there should be room for more public art to represent the city’s past.

“Why stop here with the unity dome,” he said. “The unity dome is step one.”