Vandals may have struck a blow for anarchy when they damaged one of Los Osos’ beloved bridge bear sculptures, but you can’t keep this spunky town down for long.
Within days of the news of the vandalism, which included the previous theft of a solar panel and smashing of the electrical box, as well as hammering off the snout of the sculpture on South Bay Boulevard, two local men stepped forward with the expertise to fix the damage.
According to Pandora Nash-Karner of Celebrate Los Osos the group that takes care of the statues, Dave and Kyle Doust of Los Osos came forward and offered to fix the damage for free. Dave Doust is a cement sculptor who makes water features and Kyle is a special effects artist in the film industry.
“How lucky can our town be to have such caring and talented volunteers,” said Nash-Karner.
So literally within days of the vandalism, the Dousts went to work, a task made easier after Celebrate Los Osos volunteer, John Zweemer, combed through the bushes surround the statue and found the broken off nose piece and lots of chips.
The Dousts used stainless steel rods drilled into the snout and the bear’s face, and marine epoxy to glue it back on. Kyle Doust patched the broken areas and missing pieces and repainted the fix to match the statue’s brown coloring.
As for the lighting system, which was installed by the Rotary Club, Nash-Karner said that Gary Dove, who had installed the solar panel and electrical system to light the bears at night, said replacing the panel, controller and cabinet and power supply will be nearly $500, more if metal protective boxes are used (the old one was plastic). The Los Osos Chamber of Commerce is accepting donations to help defray the costs of replacing the lighting, she said.
So while some scoundrel might have thought he’d struck a blow, the community’s response was classic Los Osos.
“While the damage is tragic,” Nash-Karner said, “the community’s response is heartening. Many thanks to John Zweemer for crawling around the ground to find as many of the missing pieces as possible; Dave and Kyle Doust for their artistic expertise, and Gary Dove for shining light on our town’s icon!”
And in an attempt to deter this from happening again, they’ve arranged for around-the-clock security through SecuritySimple.net.
The South Bay Boulevard bridge bear is one of two statues by artist Paula Zima that sit at the entrances to town. The other is on LOVR at the Los Osos Creek Bridge.