The City of Calgary says that one of the original lion sculptures from the Centre Street Bridge will be relocating to its new home in Rotary Park next year.
Over the next four days, the northeast lion will be moved to a facility where it will be repaired and conserved.
Then, in spring 2017, the 100th anniversary of the statues coming to Calgary, it will be installed at Rotary Park.
“Displaying one of the historic Centre Street Bridge lion sculptures in a public setting is a poignant tribute to our city’s past,” says Sarah Iley, arts and culture with the City of Calgary in a release. “The location in Rotary Park allows citizens an opportunity to appreciate the century-old lion sculpture in a new and accessible space where it can be viewed from the Centre Street Bridge, Memorial Drive and in Rotary Park itself.”
Officials say that experts are on hand to move, repair and reinstalll the statue at it's new location.
"Emphasis will be on preserving, conserving and repairing the lion, not on fully restoring it,” says Sarah Meilleur, vice-chair, Calgary Heritage Authority in a release. “The goal is to honour its heritage, paying a genuine and well deserved tribute to the lion as one of Calgary’s artifacts.”
The four statues were originally in place on the Centre Street Bridge from 1917 to 1999.
They had to be moved from there because the vibration from traffic was causing cracks in the base of the statues.
It’s quite a task to move the statues, which weigh 13 tons each.
The process to get them ready to move takes four days alone.
