Another giant snowman may hit Anchorage

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Inspired by the 25-foot Snowzilla, the organizer of the Fur Rendezvous festival in Anchorage, Alaska, is planning to build his own giant snowman.

Ernie Hall, the chairman of the festival board, told the Anchorage Daily News that he is not trying to compete with Billy Ray Powers, who has built Snowzilla for several years in his yard. This year's Snowzilla appeared overnight a few days before Christmas after the city decreed that the Airport Heights neighborhood could not handle a giant snowman.

Fur Rondy, as the festival is known, is scheduled for Feb. 27 to March 8. Hall said that work on the snowman could begin by late January if the festival board approves his plan.

Hall is considering other snowman projects, including encouraging Anchorage residents to build normal-sized snowmen in their yards around the city.

Snowzilla, still standing in Powers' yard, became an international celebrity thanks to the ban. On Christmas Day, a snowman demonstration of 3-foot-high snow people appeared outside Anchorage City Hall, complete with signs bearing messages like "Snow people have rights."