Heck the more I think about the more I think you're wrong - if a park and overgrown field are the only thing supporting a town, it is going to fall on its own. I feel bad and see you are invested emotionally in this statue and maybe the town, I don't know. But if you are, you should be taking all the ideas people will throw at you to maintain it from dying and stop relying on big government in the form of military force. I know those troops, their housing and food while deployed and their transportation are costing all of tax dollars.