Syracuse, N.Y. — The Columbus Monument Corporation sued the city of Syracuse over the weekend in its latest effort to block the planned removal of the Columbus statue downtown.
The group filed a petition in state Supreme Court on Sunday, claiming Mayor Ben Walsh does not have the legal authority to remove the statue.
The petition says Walsh acted unilaterally, and without Common Council approval, in his decision to remove and relocate the statue in front of the Onondaga County Courthouse. It claims the statue is covered by preservation laws and was placed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
“The city has a legal duty to preserve the Monument, not destroy it,” said Anthony Pietrafesa, an attorney for the Columbus Monument Corporation. “This action reminds the mayor that political expediency and personal antipathies are not supported by the preservation laws or city charter.”
The lawsuit also notes that the city accepted state and private money in 1992 to restore the statue. Along with the money, the city agreed in writing to preserve the statue, according to the lawsuit.
The suit lists 29 people as petitioners, including former Onondaga County Executive Nick Pirro, Onondaga County Legislator Bill Kinne and Syracuse Republican Committee Chairman Randy Potter.
Pirro, the Monument Corporation’s vice president, has been vocal in his opposition to Walsh’s decision. He was part of the mayor’s original committee formed to make a recommendation on what to do at the site.
He’s said that he and other Italian Americans on the committee argued for keeping the statue and adding a heritage site and educational component about what it means to the local Italian community. That plan, he said, was rejected.
The statue was erected in 1934, paid for mostly by Italian-American immigrants and given to the city. Many Italian-Americans at the time had been subjected to persecution and the statue was a point of pride among the community.
More recently, however, it’s come under scrutiny as the legacy of Christopher Columbus has been dissected. Some Native American groups and others have called for its removal citing Columbus’ role in enslaving indigenous populations upon his arrival in the Americas.
On Oct. 9, 2020, Walsh announced he planned to remove the Columbus statue from the circle and redevelop the site into a heritage site that honored Italian-Americans as well as the contributions of Native Americans and other traditionally marginalized groups. That came after months of deliberation by a committee he appointed to discuss the issue.
The decision drew immediate backlash from the Columbus Monument Corporation. The group lambasted Walsh and the decision at its annual wreath-laying ceremony on Columbus Day, and pledged action to save the monument.
Since then, the group has started a public marketing campaign targeting Walsh, who is up for reelection this year.
In recent weeks, they’ve purchased at least two billboards in the city telling Walsh to save the statue. They’ve produced three separate video ads attacking Walsh and distributed lawn signs. They’ve organized a social media campaign asking people not to sign Walsh’s political petitions, which he needs to collect to get on the ballot. And they wrote letters to political parties asking them not to back Walsh’s bid for re-election (Walsh is running as an independent but had sought the Working Families Party endorsement).
In a statement Monday, Corporation Counsel Kristen Smith said the city would respond to the lawsuit in court.
“The city has and will follow the process set forth in local and state law regarding the relocation and preservation of the statue,” she said. “As we do that, we will focus on creating unity.”
Walsh has maintained he is within his legal bounds to remove the statue.
Last week, he announced he’s formed a new advisory group to guide the creation of the new heritage park at the site of the statue. He also appointed a Columbus Statue Italian American Task Force to work on details for relocating the statue.
The advisory group is expected to offer design plans by the end of the year.
Walsh has not given a specific timeline for the removal of the statue.