Councillors have asked an executive department to assume care of a war memorial to help save money.
The Knockagh Monument sits above Greenisland with a panoramic view of Belfast.
It is a replica of the main memorial pre-partition - the Wellington Monument in Phoenix Park, although exactly half its height.
The Department for Communities Historic Environment Division (HED) has been asked to consider taking the memorial into its care.
Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council heard HED provides protection for monuments and archaeological sites through statutory designation.
A HED official, who attended this week’s meeting, was asked to provide the council with a response to a request by Ulster Unionist member Robert Foster.
Mr Foster said the memorial, which was established to commemorate those from the county who lost their lives in World War I, is being maintained by four of Co Antrim’s councils.
Each council contributes £2,000 annually towards maintenance and repair costs.
“It is the only memorial of its type in Northern Ireland. Should this not be something your department takes ownership of?” Mr Foster asked.
He said it was “a burden on councils” and suggested given its significance, the department should be “looking at it in a more holistic approach”.
The HED official replied: “I am not sure that taking the monument into state care will provide any more care. The department is straining its budget to look after the monuments that are in its care.”
Maintenance work carried out at the Knockagh Monument in 2018 included new facing, removal of graffiti, re-pointing, concrete repairs, inscription re-rendering, restoration and patching work.
Speaking after the meeting, Mr Foster said he believed HED should be involved in some way in the maintenance of the memorial, which he described as “a national monument”.
