A mysterious log-frame structure has appeared on the Howe Street side of the Vancouver Art Gallery’s north plaza and free speech advocates fear it means less space for legal protests during the 2010 Winter Olympics.

“This structure is part of the Province's Robson Square activation,” said a 2010 Winter Games Secretariat official who responded on condition of anonymity. “We are not announcing the actual use at this time.”

“It would seem to encroach on the area that is traditionally used for free expression,” said Prof. Michael Byers, spokesman for the Civil Liberties Advisory Committee.

CLAC, led by former Provincial court judge Jerry Paradis, had the support of Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit chief Bud Mercer and Vancouver Police deputy chief Steve Sweeney to leave the plaza free of Olympic sponsor activities. It is downtown Vancouver’s unofficial civic square where protests are common, including the start of the Critical Mass bike ride on the last Friday of each month.

The plaza features a permanent fountain in the centre and the Omega-sponsored Olympic and Paralympic countdown clock near the Hornby Street side.

“This is a disappointing but, perhaps, unsurprising development, given the indifference and sometimes antagonistic relationship the government has had with free speech around these Olympic Games,” said B.C. Civil Liberties Association executive director David Eby.

Bob Mackin reports for Vancouver 24 hours.