Damaged seashell menorah threatens 24-year South Beach Hanukkah tradition

Driving the news: The 92-year-old artist says he sold the sculptures to the city last year for $6,000 to ensure proper storage and installation "for future generations."

• City spokesperson Melissa Berthier tells Axios that the sculptures were "damaged in transit this holiday season" and that it's "unlikely that the damaged décor will be repaired and ready for display this year."
• In their place, the city installed a metallic menorah and dreidel at the Euclid Oval, where the annual menorah lighting and holiday celebrations are still being held.

Friction point: Berthier says the city advised Abramson of the damages in November and sent him photos via text message, but he tells Axios he "never heard from the city."

• "And then I went down to Lincoln Road and I was shocked," he says. "They had a little baby dreidel there."
• Abramson says his sculptures — which are made of wood, concrete and shells from the beach — weigh over 1,000 pounds between them and need small fixes every year as shells fall off.

Last year, when Abramson sold the sculptures to the city, he says he used $3,000 of the proceeds to restore it.

• "If it was damaged, that was their responsibility to transport it properly."

What's next: The city is coordinating with Abramson to visit the storage facility where a holiday décor vendor is storing the sculptures, Berthier said.

• Abramson says he plans to visit the site on Thursday to advise the vendor on how to fix them.
• "And hopefully we can put it back together again" before Hanukkah ends, he says.