Despite a unanimous Portland City Council decision 11 months
ago, there has been little public discussion about restoring the historic David
P. Thompson elk statue and fountain that was damaged and then removed after
public protests in 2020.
Obviously, however, there has been talk and activity in the
background aimed at rebuilding the fountain and elk pedestal at its historic
location on S.W. Main Street.
The evidence became clear at a City Council work session on
April 10 for the 2023-2024 municipal budget.
The non-profit Portland Park Foundation proposed to raise funds to pay
for construction drawings for the restoration project, if the city promises to
allocate $1.5 million for construction costs.
The $1.5 million presumably would come from Water Bureau
revenues, given that the Water Bureau is charged with rebuilding the
fountain. The Parks Bureau will be in
charge of replacing the elk statue.
Mary Ruble, the foundation’s treasurer, said $70,000 in commitments
already has been raised. Randy Gragg,
the foundation’s executive director, said a crowd-funding campaign would begin
if the City Council assures construction costs. “We anticipate widespread
approval” by citizens, he said. The total estimated cost of design and construction drawings is $156,000.
If the plan comes to fruition, the elk and its fountain would be
restored sometime in 2024.
Timing is critical. A
new form of city government takes power in 2025, and there is no guarantee that
a new, 12-member City Council would carry out a resolution adopted by the
five-member council in May, 2022.
The fountain and statue were given to the city in 1900 by
David P. Thompson, an early pioneer and one-time Portland mayor who also was a
founder of the Oregon Humane Society.
While it would be inappropriate to assume that City Council reconstruction
funding is assured, three of the five council members ---Mayor Ted Wheeler and
Commissioners Mingus Mapps and Dan Ryan -- referred favorably to the fountain
in their comments during the budget session.
Wheeler said the elk “symbolically has a great deal of importance to the
people of the city.” He said its restoration be a welcome sign of downtown
recovery.
Mayor Ted Wheeler is expected to produce a final proposed
budget in mid-May, when it will be sent to the City Council for final approval
in June.
---Fred Leeson
Join Building on History’s mailing list by writing “add me”
to fredleeson@hotmail.com
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