PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) — A Florida city is fighting to keep a 34-foot cross in a park after a judge ordered it removed.
The Pensacola News-Journal reports Pensacola officials announced Friday they will appeal a federal judge’s ruling that the cross be removed because it is a religious symbol on public land.
The concrete cross has been in the city’s Bayview Park since 1969. The Freedom From Religion Foundation sued the city on behalf of four people, demanding the cross be removed.
A federal judge sided with the group that seeks separation of religion and government and ordered the cross to come down on July 19. The city has asked that the order be suspended while it appeals the ruling, saying it would cost $7,500 to remove the cross and another $10,000 to reinstall it if it wins the appeal.