This is one of the memorials for veterans that stand near the courthouse in Cleveland, Tenn.CLEVELAND, Tenn. — The Bradley County Courthouse plaza soon will receive a new marker honoring veterans.
The pole-mounted Blue Star memorial plaque, sponsored by the Aldersgate Garden Club, is 45 inches wide and stands more than 7 feet high.
In a Friday afternoon meeting, a handful of county leaders and representatives of MainStreet Cleveland determined that the best place for the marker will be in the brick-lined raised bush garden to the right of the courthouse’s main entrance.
The garden area, which lines a stepped walkway, might even be a good place for the Aldersgate Garden Club to maintain the marker with flowers and shrubs, suggested Commissioner Cliff Eason.
“There’s some good potential to spruce things up back here,” said Sharon Marr, executive director for MainStreet Cleveland.
“I’m all in favor of putting it out there,” said Commissioner Jeff Yarber.
However, the marker’s exact location was not a simple decision. Bradley County Mayor D. Gary Davis said there were aesthetic and physical challenges to finding the right spot for the memorial.
Davis said that one of the considerations was the marker’s impact upon the courthouse’s architectural balance. A number of monuments dedicated to the county’s veterans, a 9/11 memorial and a gazebo already anchor the wings of the courthouse plaza.
“My only fear about it would have been if it started to look out of place,” said Yarber.
Another problem that the pole-mounted marker posed was the plaza ground itself. The Blue Star memorial could not be placed within the existing clusters of memorials without drilling and refilling a section of the plaza concrete walkway, said Davis.
Davis said he did not want to make an arbitrary decision regarding the marker’s placement, citing past memorial marker matters that turned surprisingly controversial long after they were approved and resolved.
“I just wanted something more formal, in writing,” said Davis to the County Commission’s Land and Building Committee members.
The marker will be dedicated at the courthouse Veterans Day service on Nov. 11.
Paul Leach is based in Cleveland. Email him at paul.leach.press@gmail.com.