A UNIQUE art project in Win-chester to screen live images of people called Alfred on the Internet is close to clearing its final hurdle.

Winchester civic chiefs will discuss the second phase of the controversial £99,000 light art project today.

They are seeking authority under the Highways Act to erect a kiosk with four television screens showing the everyday lives of ten local men and boys called Alfred.

The four-metre-tall, steel structure will be positioned in The Broadway outside the Blue Dolphin fish and chip shop, and be open 24 hours a day for six months.

Artist Pierre Vivant is working on what he has called a "living monument" to link the myths of King Alfred with modern lives.

Mr Vivant is developing a website at www.alfreds.net and setting up a webcam network to show 12 images in the kiosk.

The site will also develop a register of Alfreds in the area and a source of information about Alfred the Great. The kiosk will be placed symbolically at the opposite end of The Broadway to the 1901 statue of King Alfred.

The city council is to consult nearby shopkeepers, but unless there are major objections the project is all set to go ahead. Tony Langridge, chief estates officer, said: "If there are representations that are considered to be significant they will be reconsidered. If there is a huge uproar it will be reconsidered."

Mr Langridge said the project had been delayed from an October start date. It was now due to be ready in November or December and would last for six months. The first phase of the project, Colourswatch, took place last December. Dozens of flashing lights were placed in shops in the High Street and Broadway.

The Alfred kiosk has been criticised as a waste of public money by the Tories on the city council. Most of the cost has come from the National Lottery.