Cathedral of Junk Letter

**If you've ever, ever, seen or enjoyed the Cathedral of Junk - please, please write to the City of Austin and tell them so! Don't let them take it down!**

http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm

Dear City of Austin,
I wanted to write to you about the Cathedral of Junk, and to urge you to save it. I am not a native Austinite; I moved here about 4 years ago and I confess that Austin is not one of my favorite cities. But I love, love the Cathedral of Junk, and it is one of the few things I truly like about Austin.

I begin with what seems like a simple question: Have you physically visited and seen the Cathedral of Junk? I say this because neither the title nor pictures truly do justice to this Austin work of art. When I first went to see it, I too did not expect much at all; I expected a pile of junk. However, when I actually saw it, I was staggered and my breath was taken away: it is a very impressive piece of art.

Personally, I believe the best thing about the Cathedral is its whimsy - it's an innocent, pure, and child-like work of art, free of pretensions. The fact that the owner does not charge anything and allows anyone to come in and wander its halls speaks volumes about the generous nature of the artist/owner and the art itself. This sculpture continuously gives back to Austin citizens in a way few private works of art are able to. And like all great works of art, it's constantly refreshing. I am surprised every time I see it; there is always something new that I've missed earlier.

The Cathedral has already undergone huge renovations in order to follow code regulations; I think this shows that the owner as well as other Austin citizens really do want to follow city regulations. They have complied with each step; please do not continue to punish them, to punish me, to punish everyone by depriving them of the future of the Cathedral of Junk.