Julia Goudkova thought painting her late partner’s memorial park bench was a great way to celebrate his memory.
Colin Mackay died in a motorcycle accident in 2015.
Goudkova has sanded, washed, primed and painted the memorial bench near Maple Street and Ogden Avenue on Kits Point vivid colours of yellow, red, teal and white.
Now the City of Vancouver says it has to go.
“They said that … it would impede with the uniformity of the look of the park,” Goudkova told CBC News, as she finished touching up some yellow leaves. “They basically said they qualify it as tagging, as graffiti and vandalism.”
Apparently painting memorial park benches is not allowed in Vancouver and the bench will be replaced with a new one after a memorial is held at the park for Mackay on July 2nd.
A dedicated park bench in Vancouver currently costs $5,500 and includes a personalized plaque for 10 years.
Last modified: June 29, 2019
I’ve owned a picnic table in kits since 1997 and have often had to sand, and revarnish as the park board doesn’t do it. In 2010, I paid another $5500 to buy a new table as the other was so destroyed by table top BBQs. I think painting benches is a lovely way to celebrate lives of people with love and it adds so much beauty to the park! Painted pianos and sidewalks are trending across the city from rainbows in the west end, to Italian flags on the drive. Come on Parks- practice be saying ‘yes we can!’
The bench looks nice and brings more color to the park but rules are to be respected. If she did that without consulting the authorities first, it is not good.
At the same time, if park board is not looking after the benches or picnic tables, it is not a bad idea that people that owned them can do it.
It looks beautiful! and as long as its tastefully done, what’s the harm?! most of the benches not looked after by good citizens like her are falling apart…the park board is wrong as usual.
It would be better if they actually did something useful instead of just complaining and trying to sue people all the time.