Work begins to move war memorial

From PetoskeyNews.com: Work begins to move war memorial

Piece by piece, workers recently have been dismantling the memorial to World War II and Korean War veterans on Petoskey’s west side in preparation to reinstall it a few blocks away in Pennsylvania Park.

Petoskey Department of Parks and Recreation director Al Hansen said footings were poured last week at the monument’s new site, across a walkway from an existing group of war memorials in the downtown park.

“The two largest memorials (the World War II/Korean War monument and one commemorating local veterans of the Vietnam conflict) will be located opposite each other,” Hansen said.

Richie Construction is assisting the city with the monument’s move, for which members of Petoskey High School’s Class of 1949 spearheaded fundraising. Workers dismantling the monument Monday at its site near the corner of Mitchell and Madison streets were hopeful the work there would be finished by today, Tuesday. Hansen expects at least a few days of work will be involved in putting the monument back together.

Parks and recreation officials originally hoped to move the monument in two pieces. But when they determined that numerous stones that help form the structure were damaged, Hansen said it was decided to disassemble the monument more thoroughly — separating the stones that surround the commemorative tablets — and reconstruct it at its new site.

Earlier on, the expense to move the monument was expected to be in the $5,000 to $6,000 range. But now, Hansen said, it appears the cost will be in the $6,000 to $7,000 range, including landscaping at the new site.

Hansen said about $6,000 is available from the fundraising efforts. He expects the city’s use of in-house labor for some of the relocation work will help in controlling its expenses for the project, and hopes that some local landscaping firms perhaps can donate some resources to rein in the costs.

Class of 1949 members involved with the fundraising noted that the monument’s west-side location isn’t well-suited for those who’d like to visit and pay respects to veterans. The site is in a commercial neighborhood near a busy highway, with limited parking nearby.

Petoskey’s parks and recreation master plan has identified a goal of consolidating war memorials in the downtown park. Hansen sees this spot as an appropriate one for honoring and commemorating veterans.

“It’s been a long time coming,” he said of the relocatio