Christo Javacheff
 / FOX21: Kelly Werthmann
FREMONT COUNTY, COLO. -- The artist who has proposed a controversial piece of artwork to be displayed over the Arkansas River has postponed his exhibition date from August 2014 to August 2015 to allow more time for planning and construction.
Christo Javacheff and his late wife Jeanne Claude's project involves hanging a total of six miles of fabric in eight sections over a 42-mile stretch of the river from Canon City to Salida.
Christo had hoped to get a Record of Decision from the Bureau of Land Management right away but ran into some opposition from groups such as Rags Over the Arkansas River (ROAR), who argue his project will slow traffic along Highway 50 and threaten wildlife.
Christo has since received approval from the BLM and Canon City council members. However, the public has asked to see event management plans, and the construction window of 28 months has closed.
Moving the two-week display period back a year will allow plenty of time to plan and construct the display.
Officials said the construction process will not change, nor will the number of days needed to finish. Originally construction was set to begin in April of this year, but officials have not said if that will still happen.