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A presentation seeking better mural protections from Vernon city council ended in dramatics after a member of the gallery stood up and told elected officials to do their research.
Local artist, Michelle Loughery, was in the gallery of council chambers to hear a delegation presentation about the city's murals and their so-called state of disrepair.
Things got heated at the end of the presentation when members of the public at the council meeting tried to voice their own opinions.
Loughery is the lead artist of most of the murals around Vernon. She stood up citing freedom of speech, despite Mayor Victor Cumming telling her she was out of order.
"You should be ashamed of yourself. Those murals have paid enough money over and over and over again," said Loughery. "Thank you all who supported me. I am embarrassed for you all."
City council meetings are bound by procedure and members of the public are only allowed to speak at designated times – namely when the mayor, who runs meetings, calls for public input.
Loughery then left the meeting and a large number of attendees left with her. Once the gallery nearly cleared, one member of the public asked why people weren’t allowed to speak, at which point Cumming explained procedures to him.
Murals a point of tension
Vernon's murals have long been a point of tension between some members of the public and city council.
The murals were part of a project started by Loughery to help at-risk youth in the community by providing them something worthwhile to spend their time on – painting murals.
Loughery's first mural was painted in 1998, and almost every mural in Vernon was a part of the project and under her artistry.
Community advocate, Dawn Tucker, was before council on Monday afternoon representing themself and Judy Rose. Tucker was presenting their petition to save one of the murals slotted to be torn down alongside a building – the one of Sveva Caetani.
Time constraints meant Tucker was unable to give their full presentation to council, but the petition is calling for policies, procedures and processes to be put in place to protect murals.
Castanet has been in contact with Tucker to receive the full presentation, an overview given before council can be found here.
