KALAMAZOO (WKZO AM/FM) — Work crews have removed the top of the statue on the Fountain of the Pioneers and continued removing some of the art-deco panels that made up the side of the fountain and stacking them on a pallet for transport to storage.
The City Commission voted to remove the statue because some say its depiction of a pioneer standing over a Native American is racist and offensive.
Deputy City Manager Jeff Chamberlain, who took a coffee break in the park to check on the progress of the work, would not say where the statue will be stored.
He says the firm they hired to disassemble the statue has a lot of experience at this sort of work.
The plan was to take the art deco depression-era sculpture apart in a way that it could be put back together when they find a permanent home for the statue, something they have not yet done.
They will continue to remove the decorative parts of the fountain that are salvagable and demolish the rest. They currently have no permanent plan for features to fill the space in the center of the park but say they hope to come up with some by next year.
In the interim, the reflecting pools will be filled with dirt and covered with grass.
They are also planning a “healing” process to make community members who are unhappy to see the fountain removed, feel better about what is going on in the park. That apparently has yet to begin.
