Melbourne restaurant owner gets results with mural back on building

Chez Quan fights city council to get mural back

MELBOURNE, Fla. – Following this week's City Council meeting, it appears a Thai restaurant on Aurora Road will get back its 40-foot mural the city ordered to be removed in April.

"Every time I pull up to the building, it's just plain brown," said Adam Woodworth, co-owner of Chez Quan's on Aurora Road.

Woodworth has been fighting to bring back the mural ever since he was notified in April that it was in violation of city code.

At the time, the city designated downtown as the only place murals as big and with as much text as Woodworth's could be displayed on commercial buildings.

Woodworth told News 6 Wednesday he and his customers have missed the artwork.

"A lot of customers, I'll see them walk over to the side to just look and see if anything's back up on the wall before they come in," he said.

Woodworth spoke at the City Council meeting Tuesday.

Supporting his cause, leaders advanced a new law to allow murals on commercial buildings in more parts of the city than just downtown.

Woodworth and city leaders worked together to find a way to bring the mural back following the original airing of a News 6 story in April.

When asked if the News 6 report helped him to get results, Woodworth answered, "Tremendously, without that and without the support of the community, I think we would have just been another one of the businesses that tried to do something and nothing ended up happening."

A finalized version of the new mural law is expected to be approved at the next City Council meeting on Sept. 13.

Chez Quan's plans to put a new mural up shortly after.


About the Author:

James joined News 6 in March 2016 as the Brevard County Reporter. His arrival was the realization of a three-year effort to return to the state where his career began. James is from Pittsburgh, PA and graduated from Penn State in 2009 with a degree in Broadcast Journalism.