I was at the Dallas City Council briefing on the Pioneer Park Cemetery Confederate Monument on Wednesday. While council didn't vote (this was just a preliminary briefing), the direction is clear -- removal. What happens after is anyone's guess. Estimated cost of removal and storage is $500k.

11 of the 13 members of council spoke. Only 1 (Rickey Callahan of SE Dallas) spoke in favor of keeping it. McGough and, interesting, Griggs (who is running for mayor) didn't speak. The other 10 varied from extremely passionate to "I'll support my fellow members of council" in favor of removing. There was no public comment period as this was just a briefing.

To my knowledge, I've near seen the Monument. But I did walk right along the south and east sides of Pioneer Park on my way to/from lunch. The Monument is apparently 65' tall, but from my vantage point, you couldn't see it through the trees. It was built in 1896 and has been relocated once in the 60s when I-30 was built.

What does the monument look like?

Raptor said:

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I didn't realize that it was taller than the Bank of America building.

Bye.

The city can't afford to pay the police, but there's always money for stuff like this.

I'm on the City Council here in Marshall. We have a Confederate Statue out in front of our historic courthouse downtown. I dread the day this all gets brought up.

edit: The land the courthouse here sits on belongs to Harrison County, so it probably wouldn't even be a city issue.

City council is typically higher profile than county commissionaires. It will be in your lap.

I'm thinking out loud here, but as a proactive measure, could the owner of the statue (the county?) establish a charitable trust and donate the statue and the small parcel of the land where it sits to the trust, for the express purpose of the preservation of the statue for historical/educational purposes? That way if the wrong/weak people end up in power some day, at least it won't be the government tearing it down? The local historical society or Daughters of the Confederacy could be the trustees...

Ol Jock 99 said:

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City council is typically higher profile than county commissionaires. It will be in your lap.

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It depends who owns the property. City parks and county parks are different, not hierarchical. If it's on county property, then it's the county commissioners who get to deal with it.

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I'm thinking out loud here, but as a proactive measure, could the owner of the statue (the county?) establish a charitable trust and donate the statue and the small parcel of the land

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My understanding, from issues completely unrelated to this, is that no, the county cannot simply donate property to a recipient of choice. And subdividing a public space is a whole other issue.