For Halloween last year, Brampton’s Nick Desjardins, 35, created a piece of public art so spectacular it created a traffic jam of visitors in his Heart Lake subdivision.

The wooden behemoth of Megatron, the popular Transformers villian, was eye-catching and larger-than-life. Desjardins, a construction worker by trade, is now at it again, creating a scaly and scary dragon which measures 15-feet high and 30-feet wide.

His home at 2 Peterson Crt., near Richvale Drive and Sandalwood Parkway, has also been attracting curious bystanders stopping to watch as Desjardins’ dragon sculpture slowly takes shape. When finished, the fire-breathing dragon will have plumes of coloured dry ice wafting from its jaws and will be bathed in laser lights.

The Heart Lake resident said he also plans to have Medieval-themed music playing in the background. The dragon will be lit with strobe lights. In short, it will be show of light, craftsmanship and sound. "I do this for the community, so that families can come and share the spirit of Halloween," he said adding he has spent some 96 hours creating the monster. "This will be the last year I do this because someone complained to the City of Brampton, but I assured them (City) that I would be taking the structure down after Halloween..."

For weeks now, the Brampton artist has been meticulously measuring and sawing chunks of pallet wood and hammering them in place until the wee hours. Desjardins has spent some $500 of his own money for the dragon. He said he's grateful to the local Home Depot for donating spray paint and his company for giving him the 2 X4s.

Next year, Desjardins hopes to collaborate with the City and create an equally impressive structure, but in a public space. This will allow more people to visit and appreciate his art and he won't fall afoul of City's bylaws, he told The Guardian. His full-time job and bouts of rain and heavy winds over the past couple of weeks have made his task doubly hard, he said, but Desjardins is confident the dragon will be ready in time to greet trick-or-treaters on Monday, Oct. 31.