c. San Francisco Chronicle An artist's proposal to create a pink cloud over the intersection of Market and Castro streets is creating a stir in one of San Francisco's most whimsical neighborhoods. The idea is recycled from 2000, when artist Christian Werthmann's 'pink cloud' was one of two winning proposals for a city art piece to commemorate the late Harvey Milk, a supervisor and gay rights advocate. There was no money at the time to fund the project, so it was shelved. Now it's back -- revived by Supervisor Bevan Dufty and the San Francisco Arts Commission to add some flair to the temporary public plaza that opened last month at the intersection. 'Milk always had a knack for theatrical entrances, and we were trying to come up with something that matched his personality and sense of humor,' Werthmann said. Some do find the idea delightful; others say it conjures a toxic cloud that's destined to cause a car wreck. Then there are practical questions: Will the wind send the cloud cruising down Castro Street? Werthmann, a professor of landscape architecture at Harvard University, wrote his original proposal when he lived in Oakland, with input from friends at the German architecture firm LOMA. While the kinks need to be worked out, he envisions hollow street poles that emit steam, with lights or a reflective mirror on them that shine pink. He's brought in a climate engineer to help him with cloud formation. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is paying Werthmann $9,500 for a feasibility study, which should take about three months. 'We have to come out to San Francisco and study the wind patterns and watch the traffic,' Werthmann said. Members of the Arts Commission presented the idea one Saturday afternoon last month at a community meeting at the Eureka Valley Recreation Center and compared Werthmann's creation with other mist installations, such as the Blur Building that was covered entirely by mist and reached by a long pier on Lake Neuch?tel for the 2002 Swiss Expo. In 2003, an artist filled a gritty alley in Manhattan with fog for a piece called 'Foggy Day.' While many in the audience of a dozen found the idea intriguing, they had some concerns. 'I'm conflicted whether I like it or not,' said Tito Vandermeyden, artist and owner of Studio 94114. 'The place is very windy, and there will be a lot of rubber necking. I'd like to see local Castro artists promoted, too.' Terry Asten Bennett, owner of Cliff's Variety Store and president of the Castro Merchants Association, is worried about accidents when drivers crest Market Street and find a big 'pink UFO' in the sky. 'We've had a lot of customers say, 'What in the hell are they thinking?' ' she said. But public art often does provoke, just as Milk did, Dufty said. 'I think this is a great opportunity to do something intriguing,' Dufty said. Joe Curtin, a member of the Castro Area Planning Association, said the piece is interesting, but he wants to read the feasibility study to make sure people 'won't get soaking wet.' 'It could enliven the space and bring people to the area,' said Jennifer Lovvorn, public art project manager for the Arts Commission. 'Imagine being at the Ferry Building, and seeing a pink thing in the distance and saying, 'What's that?' ' 