SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Mayor Mark Heyck says he supports the city dropping its trademark of the Wildcat Cafe, less than a year after that legal protection caused a kerfuffle with an artist printing shirts featuring the cafe.

The Wildcat Cafe structure and several of the props shown are some of the items the Canadian Museum of History is offering to other museums in Canada as it closes its Canada Hall exhibit in Ottawa. - photo courtesy Canadian Museum of History

Last summer the city, citing its trademark of the Wildcat Cafe name, demanded artist Nick MacIntosh hand over 105 T-shirts with prints of his painting depicting mice dining at the iconic eatery before later relenting.

"I think it's fine to let it go," Heyck said Tuesday about the trademark, which gives the city exclusive rights to use it across the country for 15 years and can be renewed indefinitely for a fee. The city could apply under Canada's Trademark Act to cancel the legal protection, which is otherwise good until 2026.

The mayor's comments came as a Gatineau, Que. museum removes its Wildcat Cafe display.

Since 2002, a 7.25 metre by 5.35 metre replica of the cafe seating area and exterior has been part of the Canada Hall in the Canadian Museum of History. The museum is changing the displays in the space and is looking to offload various props including the Wildcat Cafe structure, which has already been spoken for.

Items from the cafe display include a display cabinet, lights, tables, barrels, wooden crates and a helicopter antenna. The items are being offered for free. However, the organization that gets the items will have to arrange and pay for transport of them.

Walt Humphries, president of the NWT Mining Heritage Society, said the group's board met Tuesday to discuss potentially getting some of the items.

While the board is interested, the potential cost of shipping items North is a prohibitive factor, Humphries said.

Patricia Lynch, the Canadian Museum of History director of corporate affairs, said the structure will be going to a tourist resort in Quebec. Centre touristique La Petite Rouge operates twelve cottages for rent beside a lake about two hours drive northwest of Montreal. A call to the resort was not returned by press time. A pre-recorded voicemail says the resort is under renovation.

The museum display predates the 2011 trademarking of the name by the city. As well, the structure isn't an exact replica of the actual city-owned cafe - it's flipped. A window on the left side of the main entry of the real building is on the right side of the museum set.

The mayor said he's not sure what implications there might be for the structure carrying the city's trademark going to a private resort.

The museum installation was a great way to promote Yellowknife and its history, he said.

"If there's a location in Quebec that's interested in housing it and sharing our history with that part of the country then I personally don't have an issue with that."

There was a desire to have a closer look at the trademark topic following the T-shirt issue last year, he said.

"Our administration has intended at some point to bring the whole issue of the trademark back to council to decide if we want to retain it or not," the mayor said.

"For the purposes of history and art I don't see the city making a big fuss about the trademark."

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.