Calgary reinstalls hilarious plaques about hamsters and UFOs after public uproar
Calgary's hilarious plaques are back, folks! Just days after the engraved metal plaques were removed from benches in Bowmont Park, they've been reinstalled for good.
The sayings on the engraved plaques range from slightly misleading to wildly outrageous.
"Humans first invented fire right here, 1903," one plaque claims.
"Benjy, the first hamster to fly solo around the world, took off from this spot in April 1937," another plaque says.
"This bench marks the site of the first UFO landing in Calgary, 1963," yet another plaque proclaims.
Earlier this week, it came to our attention that someone had installed bench plaques at Bowmont Park. Due to our policy around commemorative plaques and graffiti, we removed them.
— City of Calgary (@cityofcalgary) October 7, 2020
But we heard from Calgarians that you loved the sayings and you wanted them to stay. (thread) pic.twitter.com/P6cuttLWof
The city removed the humorous plaques on Tuesday for violating their policy on commemorative plaques and graffiti.
However, Calgarians swiftly fired back on social media, arguing that the signs should remain where they are — and on Thursday, the city decided to make an exception.
"We listened & reinstalled all the plaques," the city wrote on Twitter, adding that they were a "bit too cautious" in removing them.
We listened & reinstalled all the plaques. As The City, we have to err on the side of caution - but in this case, it was a bit too cautious.
— City of Calgary (@cityofcalgary) October 7, 2020
Listening to what’s important to Calgarians is part of our job. If we can make changes for a better outcome, that’s what we’ll do.
Many Calgary residents have taken to Twitter to thank the city for reinstalling the plaques, praising the unusual signs as a spot of light during a dark and difficult time.
"Thank you for putting them back, these are funny and add an interesting element to city walks," one person wrote.
"To whom ever placed these signs, thank you," another person added. "Dark times in Calgary, so thank you for your quirky humour."
City of Calgary
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