Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - More than two years after the removal of the Christopher Columbus statue in Buffalo, the sponsors say they are still looking for a new location. They say they anticipate an announcement soon.
Peter Lojacano of the Federation of Italian-American Societies says there has been a search for a new site for the statue. "There have been five spots which have been that had been considered for relocation, of which one spot is the current one that we're looking at that they're working on to be able to hold the weight of the statue," says Lojacano. The statue weighs 1,500 pounds.
Lojacano says after vandals sprayed graffiti on the statue in 2020, the decision to remove the statue was significant. "It was made with a lot of thought in mind. And we did not want to see further harm done to it. And it's a part of the legacy that the Italian immigrants had put together their nickels and dimes to get the statue made. And so we wanted to make sure that no further harm was done," says Lojacano.
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He says a decision is expected to come in a couple of months for a new location, which he hopes will be a safer home for the statue.