by Joe Courter
Poor old Joe, the Confederate statue. Due to a “you lead, no you lead” dance, the decision to move or not move the 111-year-old monument remains up in the air.
Would that it could be just lifted up in the air and plopped down somewhere else but the world (and physics) doesn’t work that way.
After much righteous agitation, and a large rally, and a lot of citizen input, the idea came forward from the County Commission to have people donate to the Matheson Museum in the name of moving the statue. However, no lead was taken on fundraising, some who reportedly asked about donating to the Matheson were informed by the Matheson to wait until they made their decision.
And then the Matheson did decide … to punt back to the County Commission, and refund the $1,200 or so back to the donors.
They pointed out that the new county manager, Lee Niblock, had worked on a similar project in Marion County a few years ago, maybe he could spearhead the project. Financial and legal concerns were cited in the Matheson’s refusal to lead. So there it stands, literally.
The following appeared in the Gainesville Sun on this topic as well. http://www.gainesville.com/article/2015151109799.