Cape Coral statue to be refurbished after hurricane damage

A Cape Coral statue is being refurbished after it received damage from the recent hurricanes in the area.

Big John is a Cape Coral staple. It came to the city back in 1969. It started off as a grocery store’s mascot, and now it’s a statue in The Cape.

Big John is going to spend some time at Brand One Ink in Cape Coral, so it’s not going too far. It’s getting some wear and tear repaired.

Elmer Tabor calls himself the big uncle of Big John. He said the repair is needed.

“He is the only officially voted by the city council voted citizen of Cape Coral,” said Tabor.

“Keeping him for a mascot, a lot of kids grew up with him including myself,” said Tabor. “You see people here every day, the kids getting their pictures taken by Big John. Everyone knows Big John.”

But if it weren’t for a fight, Big John may not have been in Cape Coral.

“They classified Big John as a sign and he didn’t classify,” said Tabor. “Doesn’t fit in any of the sign ordinances, so the city said, you got to get rid of Big John. A big fight ensued. The citizens got behind him, went up to council, like you see a lot of times now, and to get around that sign ordinance, the City Council decided somebody came up with a brilliant idea. Well, if we make him a citizen of Cape Coral. He’s not a sign, so the City Council voted to make him a citizen of Cape Coral.

Tabor said Big John has been through a lot.

“Past couple of two you can see damage up by his chin that really was from one of the two,” said Tabor. “I’m not sure which real damage was done by Ian.”

The statue is strapped up to prevent it from getting any more damage. The straps will come down in a few weeks.

“He’s going to have a bigger smile on his face,” said Tabor.

So, if you see Big John gone for a month, don’t panic. It’s going on vacation with Tabor.