ORLANDO, Fla. – The city of Orlando continued the process Thursday of moving a 100-year-old controversial Confederate statue from Lake Eola Park.
There is no exact time frame for the complete removal of the statue, which will not be relocated Thursday, city spokeswoman Cassandra Lafser told News 6.
"It's great to see workers out here doing the preliminary work to be able to move it," David Porter said.
Porter was one of the leaders who wanted the city to remove the Confederate statue.
The mayor and City Council agreed last month to dismantle, restore and move the statue, known locally as "Johnny Reb," to the Confederate section of Greenwood Cemetery.
"In a less than perfect world, that is probably the appropriate place for it where people who would really appreciate it, because this is a park for everybody," Porter said.
Crews put up gates around the statue to block people from getting too close. Workers placed tripods all around the monument. They took pictures and 3D images of the statue as part of the preservation and removal efforts.
The marble monument has a plaque honoring "soldiers, sailors and statesmen of the Confederate States of America."
The statue was a gift to the city in 1911 from the Daughters of the Confederacy. It was placed at Lake Eola Park in 1917.
Several Southern cities have recently faced controversy involving Confederate memorials.
Porter said it symbolizes a dark time in our nation's history that doesn't represent what Orlando stands for today.
"Having this statue here is inconsistent with the city's Orlando United campaign," he said.
Parkgoers stopped by the site to check out this latest development surrounding the controversial statue. Some tell News 6 they are happy to see it go, while others say it should stay where it is.
"It does represent a bad time, but it's a part of life. We had to go through that to get to where we are now," Jennifer Irvin said.
"It offends some people and that's a good thing that they're going to remove it. A lot of people are offended by it," Jesus Rivera said.
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