His company is called Blue Painting, but lately he’s been using a lot of grey.
Nelson resident Bill Lelievre spent a few hours painting over long-standing graffiti on the Medical Arts Building downtown Thursday morning, as part of a local project to help beautify Baker Street.
And he’s doing it for free.
“This graffiti is everywhere around town, so this is a large job, but I’ve been here 15 years and this is something I’m intent on doing,” the single father told the Star.
“I’ve seen the downtown pretty much going to the shits, so I wanted to volunteer to clean it up. Things are a little out of control right now. I have a young child who’s in Grade 6, and she likes to come downtown, so I want her to feel safe.”
Lelievre was moved by the full page ad recently published in the Star, signed by 52 local businesses, and decided that he wanted to find a way to help. He believes the solution to the controversies around panhandling and the community’s relationship to the homeless will have to be multi-faceted and collaborative.
“We have an amazing little town here, and it’s time we clean the graffiti up and look at the other issues. Panhandling is out of my scope, but cleaning up the buildings is something I can and will do.”
He encouraged everyone in the community to find ways to contribute. Another issue that has been repeatedly raised is the two ragged Canadian flags on the main drag, both which are within sight of the Medical Arts Building.
And when historian Greg Nesteroff learned of Lelievre’s contribution, he praised him for revitalizing one of the most prominent and iconic buildings on the Baker strip.
“I think it’s underrated. In Nelson we’re quite famous for Victorian buildings, but this one is more art deco because it was built in 1930. In many other communities that building would be much more celebrated than it is.”
He said local art deco enthusiast Peter Bartl has done a book on modernist architecture, and has been trying to raise the profile of buildings like the Medical Arts in town.
Nesteroff said the building is also significant due to its size.
“The stock market had just crashed, so maybe it wasn’t the greatest time to be putting up a building of that size. It’s four storeys tall, which is unusual for a building of that vintage.”
He praised Lelievre for his work.
“I think it’s fantastic that he’d be willing to do that. There are a lot of spots where graffiti has been for a long time, and I know it’s not cheap or easy to cover, so if he’s willing to do that, hats off to him.”
