NEW ULM - The marker with Friedrich Kiesling's image in silhouette on it soon will be arriving in town.

The actual, life-sized statue won't be far behind, Heritage Preservation Commission members learned Monday night.

The marker and statue will be located in Kiesling Park in the 200 block of North Minnesota Street.

Kiesling was the blacksmith who built the house located in the park. The house survived the Dakota Conflict of 1862.

The full-color, life-size statue of a standing Kiesling should be finished in a month or so because all the artwork has been completed, All that remains is the forming and coloring of the statue which will be made from a strong, resin-type material called Fossil, Building Official Dave Christian reported.

The one-of-a-kind marker - which is supposed to be ready for shipping Thursday or Friday - has text wrapped around the silhouette form of the blacksmith and costs $181, Christian told the commission.

The statue is all black except for the skin coloration in Kiesling's face and hands and the "V" of white showing from above the vest and between his suit's lapels, Christian said.

However, he said it was alright with him if the statue took a while to be made because "we really don't have a place to put him because nothing has been started over there."

Without the planned fence, there is nothing for the statue to stand beside. The cost of the statue will run about $1,600 for the artwork and design and about $1,817 for creating the statue itself, Christian said.

In other action, the commission created a sub-committee of commission members who would review Preserve American grants before the commission acts upon them. Members are HPC Chairperson Deb Zahn, Commissioner Jeannie Leighty, and Commission Advisor Anne Makepeace.

Ron Larsen can be reached at rlarsen@nujournal.com