NEW ORLEANS — The city will accept proposals from nonprofits and governments on what to do with three of the four Confederate monuments the city is taking down.
The news came late Thursday night when city officials also announced that the Robert E. Lee monument at Lee Circle will not be removed until Friday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.
The city decided to open up a Request for Proposals after receiving offers from both public and private institutions. It’s an effort to “facilitate the open and transparent selection of where they ultimately go and how they can be presented as educational tools with historical context.”
Meanwhile, the three monuments that were removed from their pedestals are being crated and moved to a city-owned warehouse. That announcement came a day after the P.G.T. Beauregard monument and pieces of the Jefferson Davis statue were spotted in plain view in a city-owned maintenance yard next to old tires and trash.
Only nonprofit and governmental entities will be eligible to submit proposals to the city. The RFP process will be used for the Battle of Liberty Place statue, the Jefferson Davis statue and the Robert E. Lee statue.
The P.G.T. Beauregard statue is not included in the RFP process because of the ownership dispute with the City Park Improvement Association that runs City Park. The city said discussions are ongoing with the association.
The statues will not be able to be displayed outdoors on public property in Orleans Parish.
The RFP is expected to be released in the coming weeks, with proposals due this summer. A public selection committee made up of city officials will make a recommendation for entities to receive and display the statues, with approval by the City Council.