“Crossing Point” Sculptures Installed – Mar/Apr 2006

Reprinted with pemission from the Channel Town Press of La Conner, WA

The long-awaited granite tugboat and stone wheel arrived Wednesday on the La Conner waterfront.

A granite canoe will be installed at a later date. The two sculptures are part of the scaled-down ‘Crossing Point’ sculpture display honoring the town’s heritage at Kenmare Park, overlooking the water on Morris Street.

The wheel welcomes visitors in both the English and Lushootseed languages, native language of the Swinomish who first called the Swinomish Channel home.

Mayor Wayne Everton was on hand Wednesday to greet the delivery team as the sculptures were lowered into place. ‘Thanks for bringing it here and doing it without breaking anything,’ he said as several pairs of hands guided the heavy tugboat to the ground.

‘It’s a drive-by rock-in,’ said Scott Hackney, owner of Marenakos, the company in Preston, WA that helped deliver the sculpture and donated materials for the project.

Three representatives of the NorthWest Stone Sculptors Association, the group that donated their talents in creating the pieces, also helped place the items in Kenmare Square.

Sculptor Verena Schwippert said the display is designed to connect people.

‘Two cultures are riding on the wheel, and kids will have fun playing on the little tug,’ she said.

People can admire the sculpture and also sit on it. The Tug is 7 feet, 8 inches long, while the canoe will be 10 feet long. The sculptors need 60 degree temperatures to finish the canoe as the granite is harder to cut when cold.

Longtime project Chris Rische, president of the La Conner Arts Commission, is relieved to see the project reach fruition.

‘Later in the year, we will hold a formal installation ceremony,’ he said.

The ‘Crossing Point’ project has been in the works since Spring 2005. The project got mired in controversy over a stone arch that was supposed to reach skyward from Kenmare Square. Detractors referred to the arch as something from the Flintstones, the worrying kind feared the arch could topple and prudent financiers fretted over raising $36,000 for the engineering and installation costs.

The arch problem was straightened out when it was completely eliminated from the project for all the reasons that were nearly set in stone.

Rische is thankful to Anthony Senff, who contributed an undisclosed amount of money to make the display possible.

Generous contributor Senff wasn’t available when the sculptures arrived, so he penned the following note:

The sculpture project provides an opportunity to give the La Conner community a gift in return for the many childhood memories I have of growing up in La Conner.

It also is a way to recognize my father’s and mother’s earlier history as residents and ‘Proprietors Extraordinaire’ of Gene’s Grocery from 1937 through 1956.

My favorite La Conner memories revolve around the dock and the drawbridge that were located right next to my father’s store. Sometimes as the tugboats went slowly by the dock with their long load of logs, I would hop on for a ride.

I would also ride the drawbridge, which was allowed only if you jumped on before it started opening. You would know the bridge was going to open by the sound of the tugs’ whistles as they called the bridge tender.

And yes, I did get into trouble a few times from the bridge tender for jumping and also from my mother for being late for dinner because I was stuck on the bridge when the tug had an extra long tow.