Pitt Meadows was forced to have an Oregon company produce a bike rack that serves as functional piece of art at city hall after attempts to find a Canadian supplier were exhausted.
The heron-shaped rack now sits outside city hall as a salute to a bird ubiquitous in Pitt Meadows waterways.
“We really tried hard to go Canadian,” said Linda Nelson, a local artist who sat on the now-defunct public arts committee.
With a budget of $3,500, the group priced out every possible supplier in Canada, but found their prices prohibitively expensive for customized metal work.
Creative Metal Works, based in Portland, was the only company that could craft the heron for the budgeted price.
“We had to find a company that specialized in it and was able and produce it,” said Yvonne Chiu, an arts and culture recreation manager with Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows Parks and Leisure Services.
“No one locally could custom-make anything. It’s quite specialized work.”