El Monte : Statue to Be Dedicated
The city’s replica of the Statue of Liberty, homeless for more than a year, will be dedicated Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. at its permanent site in the Civic Center, 11333 E. Valley Blvd., as part of the city’s 75th anniversary celebration.
The 22-foot-tall replica was donated to the city in 1986 by a Taiwanese immigrant, Dr. Jing T. Wang. Because it is too big for most surroundings, the city’s search for a site was long and frustrating.
At one point, the city wanted to put the statue outside county-owned Rio Hondo Municipal Court across the street from the Civic Center. But the judges said the glass-fiber replica was inconsistent with the courthouse atmosphere.
The City Council picked the Civic Center site because the statue would be visible and safe from vandals and fit in with the surrounding buildings. The statue stood there for a month to gauge public reaction, and in August the council decided that the site would be its permanent home.
The statue has received a new coat of paint and will be lighted from crown to toes. The area will be landscaped.
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