BELFAST - In an episode reminiscent of last summer's boycott of downtown businesses by motorcyclists, a passing comment at City Hall provoked another proud group. This time it was military veterans, who packed the Council Chambers to protest changes to the footbridge, or Armistice Bridge.

At issue was the Council's recent support of a request by the economic development group Our Town Belfast to pursue a $132,000 grant from ArtPlace, a national organization composed of a number of foundations.

In a preliminary letter of interest, OTB proposed that the money be used to expand the annual Please Be Seated installation of artist-designed seats in the downtown, commission a local artist to design and build eight permanent, elevated seating area on the footbridge and commission an artist to design something to conceal the pump station at the east end of the bridge.

A fourth idea — to design and install "a computer-operatd LED illumination effect on the Armistice Footbridge to artistically and respectfully create a distinctive visual focal point while providing nighttime visibility and enhanced safed features for this burgeoning destination" — arguably set up the controversy on Tuesday night.

Former City Councilor Marina Delune in particular came away with a strong vision of what the lighting could do and spoke of it enthusiastically when the idea was initially presented. Speaking on Wednesday, Our Town Executive Director Breanna Pinkham Bebb quoted from memory a phrase from Delune that may have excited some listeners and alienated others.

"Marina used the phrase, 'colorful exclamation point at the end of the Harbor Walk,'" Bebb said.

Though the phrase was not repeated on Tuesday, over a dozen veterans, many in uniform, along with supporters spoke out against the idea of dramatic additions to the bridge, which many described as disrespectful of the bridge's memorial dedication.

Timothy Parker, a veteran representing local VFW, AMVETS and American Legion posts, submitted a petition to the Council with close to 100 signatures expressing opposition to "any changes to the Armistice Memorial Bridge other than general maintenance needed to preserve th War Memorial as it is."

Comments included with the signatures ("It's a walking bridge," "We need to be local," "Leave us alone," "Been there since I was a kid," "Save it!" "Leave us a place to fish," and others) suggest that the signers may have taken different meanings from the petition's directive to "protect the Memorial as it is now and forevermore." But among those who came on Tuesday, the message was clear: the Armistice Bridge is not a place for artistic flights of fancy.

The footbridge, as it's often described to distinguish it from the larger Route 1 bridge, was given the name "Veterans Memorial Bridge" at its dedication in 1921 when the concrete and stone bridge replaced an earlier wooden crossing.

The bridge later became part of Route 1, but when the coastal route was bypassed around the city center in the 1960s the new bridge built just to the north of Veterans Bridge took honorary name along with the automobile traffic. The original Veterans Bridge bridge fell into disrepair, and at some point along the way the bronze memorial plaque disappeared.

A citizen effort in 2006 led to the reconstruction of the bridge as a pedestrian crossing. In 2011 it was rededicated as the "Armistice Bridge" and fitted with a new plaque honoring veterans of World War I.  

The Armistice Bridge has been used for pedestrian and bike crossing, fishing and bird watching. Last winter, the light poles on the bridge were wrapped in string lights. But many who came to City Hall on Tuesday night saw Our Town Belfast's proposal as going too far.

Tammy Lacher Scully, who led the efforts to reconstruct the old bridge in 2006 voiced low-key agreement with the sentiment expressed by the veterans. The original consensus at the time the bridge was rebuilt, she said, was that it should have a traditional appearance. To this end, special light fixtures were sought out that would be both historically appropriate and minimize light pollution, she said.

Others were more heatedly in their opposition.

"How quickly we forget the sacrifice people have made," said Blaine Richardson, a veteran. "Particularly in World War I. They died as babes."

Elaine Bielenberg, speaking on behalf of the Our Town Belfast design committee, said creative lighting on bridges has become common and is not generally considered disrespectful. When the light poles were decorated last year, she said, there were no objections then. Nor were there any when the idea of adding seating was brought forward this summer.

Bebb, of Our Town Belfast, reiterated Beilenberg's assurances that plans were far from being been finalized. 

"Our intention was not to design anything, it was to start a conversation ... and find some funding through grant money," she said.

The lights and seating for the bridge were not on the Council agenda, but the topic was raised once again at the end of the meeting by Councilor Mike Hurley who said he was puzzled by the reference to the bridge as a "war memorial." There are sacred spaces like battlefields that are understood to be places of reflection, he said, and then there are the many other venues that include memorials to veterans but aren't directly related to war. 

"Last I looked, we had people shooting fireworks off [the Armistice Bridge] and chopping fish heads on the rail," he said. Hurley noted that City Park has a plaque honoring veterans but isn't used differently because of it.

"I really want to know before we go forward if it means we can't put a bench out," he said. "I've been to war memorials and there are benches."

Also on Tuesday night, the Council:

• Heard an update from the Belfast Creative Coalition coordinator Kimberly Callas on the local creative economy, and approved $10,000 in continued funding for the coordintor's position.

• Nominated Councilor Roger Lee, who was absent from Tuesday night's meeting, to serve on the committee to appoint the next poet laureate. 

• Received a completed draft of a new Belfast comprehensive plan from City Planner Wayne Marshall. The plan, which serves as a loose guideline for future city planning and is required by the state was largely the work of the Comprehensive Planning Committee, which started the plan over 10 years ago but ramped up significantly in the last four years. The Council adopted the land use portion of the plan in 2009 after a number of public hearings but has yet to make official changes to zoning districts. In light of the recent resignation of committee chairman Paul Dean, Marshall recommended that the Council release the Comprehensive Planning Committee from its status as a standing committee during the next revision of the City Charter. Given that the city only requires a new comprehensive plan every 10 years, he said, a group could be convened when needed.

Penobscot Bay Pilot reporter Ethan Andrews can be reached at ethanandrews@penbaypilot.com